


Fix Me

by Peachuzoid



Category: Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Community: twd_kinkmeme, F/M, Friendship, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-30
Updated: 2013-11-11
Packaged: 2017-12-10 01:59:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 44
Words: 92,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/780463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Peachuzoid/pseuds/Peachuzoid
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Non-apocalypse AU in which Beth, the youngest of the Greene family, has lived a really sheltered life: typical southern belle, attends church on Sundays, gets straight A's, etc. But what happens when she decides to try something new? </p><p>Slow build with slight crossovers involving Breaking Bad and Sons of Anarchy, though full knowledge of either show is unnecessary. </p><p>This is also posted over <a href="http://www.fanfiction.net/s/9212726/1/Fix-Me">here</a>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"Maggie, come on! This isn't fair! It's your car—you know how much of a piece of shit it is!" Beth switched hands with her cell phone as she let her eyes wander at her surroundings. She was on her way home from Sasha's house after putting in a couple hours of work on a project for Mr. Harrison's class. Of course, the old Sable had decided to act up now of all times. "It's going on 7 o'clock and I'm stranded outside of a bar for crying out loud."

Beth could hear her half-sister sigh into the receiver, "Where are you?"

"I don't know. I think Barksdale or something like that."

"Barksdale? I'm not driving clear to Barksdale, Beth." Maggie sounded agitated with her. Beth assumed she was still probably upset over last week's fiasco. "You said you're outside a bar—go ask some guy to help you out."

"I am not asking some strange drunk man to fix your car for me. Please, Maggie. You know I can't go inside a bar," Beth pleaded.

"Find another way home." Maggie hung up.

Beth lowered the phone from her ear and stared at it in disbelief. Maggie didn't understand how nervous it made her to be stuck in Barksdale right outside of Jake's Bar. The place looked like it suited plenty of motorcyclist, all of the bikes lined up in a row. If she were Maggie, she'd have no trouble waltzing on in to ask for help. But she wasn't her, she wasn't as fearless. The only thing she could do to keep herself from having some mini panic attack was imaging someone tripping and landing on one of the motorcycles, knocking it over and causing a domino effect. She could picture all the gruff, bearded men with their beer bellies rushing through the doors with angry scowls plastered on their faces.

Beth sighed as she turned her attention back to her cell phone and dialed Shawn's number. Since Maggie had been away at college, just having returned for summer break, Beth had become a lot closer to Shawn. It only made sense really. They attended the same high school together, him being a senior this year and her a junior, not to mention living together. Shawn always took pity on her since she was the youngest.

"What's up?" Shawn answered after the fifth ring.

"Hey, can you come get me? The Sable broke down and I'm stuck in Barksdale," Beth cut right to the chase.

"Uh, now's not really a good time. I'm nowhere near Barksdale. Can't Maggie come get you?"

Beth couldn't help but wonder what that meant. Was he really busy or was he doing something he really shouldn't be doing? Sometimes she felt like she was the only innocent one. "I tried, she's not coming."

"Alright, alright. I'll see what I can do. But just to warn ya, it'll probably be a while."

"Can you hurry? Please? I'm not in a very good part of town and it's gonna be dark soon." Beth glanced back over towards the bar and bit her lip. She hadn't seen any movement so far but just to be on the safe side, she double checked to make sure the doors were locked.

Shawn tried to stifle a laugh, "Aw, quit being so naïve, Bethy. Nobody's gonna get ya. If you're so worried, just stay in the car and keep everything locked up. I'll be there in about half an hour or so, alright? Grabbing my keys and leaving now."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you! I owe you!" Beth smiled. She hung up and placed her phone in the center console. All she had to do was wait—she could do that.

Out of curiosity, Beth tried to start the car one last time. She turned the key in the ignition but it only seemed to mock her, giving her a half sputter before going silent. Beth exited from the car and slammed the door shut, sighing in frustration. Maggie knew the car was having troubles and yet she never went and got it fixed. Beth absent-mindedly kicked the car's front tire which in turn made her toes throb. That was a dumb idea.

"Car troubles?"

Beth froze as she immediately realized the voice was talking to her. She was the only one around who had a car among the sea of motorcycles. She slowly turned to see a man standing just outside the bar, approximately in his early thirties, dark wispy hair, and an unlit cigarette hanging precariously between his lips. As he reached up with his lighter to light it, her eyes were then drawn to his bare arms. He wore a leather vest over top of the sleeveless button up, his jeans were in need of a washing machine and some patchwork around the right knee, and his worn boots matched the rest of his attire. She watched him as though she were hypnotized. He slid the lighter into the cigarette pack and set them on the seat of one of the bikes suggesting that it was his.

Before Beth could even mutter up the courage to reply back to the man, still staring at him with her large doe eyes, he began to saunter over.

"Won't start or what?" The man took a drag of his cigarette and blew the smoke away from her, glancing the car over.

"Y-Yeah. I tried calling my brother, he said he'll be here soon," Beth stammered over her words, her eyes locked on him.

"Well hell, it ain't like I got much of anything better to do. Pop the hood," the man pointed a finger at the car.

Beth nodded and hesitantly followed his instruction. For a moment, she was afraid he was going to sabotage the car or something—kidnap her, take her against her will, rape her… Isn't that what always happened in those kind of movies?

But when she turned back to face him, she found herself watching him rather intrigued as he was leaning over the car and examining different parts and pieces of the engine she wouldn't even begin to know the names of. She watched as he reached further and caught her eyes drifting, landing on the bit of his now exposed stomach and making out the outline of his hipbone. By the time she even realized she was staring, she felt her face growing warm as she forced herself to look away.

The man leaned back flat on his feet as his shirt fell back into place on its own. He pulled a rag from his back pocket and wiped his hands on it, looking over at her. "Best guess is your spark plugs. Know when you last had 'em replaced?"

Beth blinked, "I'm… not sure. I don't really know a whole lot about cars. I just leave it to my brother."

The man flicked the ashes off the end of his cigarette while the faintest little smirk played at his lips. "Okay, Barbie."

"I am not a Barbie!" Beth retorted instantaneously growing red in the face. After she gave herself a moment to think about that term, she realized maybe it was partially a compliment coming from him. Barbie's were pretty… But her initial thought was that he was insulting her just like everyone else. Calling her Barbie made her seem unintelligent, like she was the perfect little girl who always listened to what her daddy said. Even if it was true, she hated being looked down upon like she was 10 years old. She didn't always have to listen to her dad if she didn't want to. She chose to behave, unlike Maggie and occasionally Shawn.

"Alright, alright," the man put his hands in the air as if to forfeit. He took another drag of his cigarette before he tossed it on the ground and smashed it with the tip of his boot.

It was Beth's time to smirk now as the words rolled off her tongue, unable to register what she was saying coherently until it was too late. "If I'm Barbie, does that make you Ken?"

The man furrowed his brow before he chuckled softly, "What?—C'mon, Barbie. You tryin'a flirt with me? You've gotta be like 15. I think I'm a little old for ya."

"My name's Beth," she folded her arms in front of her chest defiantly. "And if I was 15, I wouldn't be driving by myself now would I?"

He shrugged as she noticed he was chewing on the side of his lip. And why was she suddenly finding this man attractive? He had to be thirty at the bare minimum and he was too old for her.

"So, you got a name?" Beth leaned against the car as she allowed her eyes to take him all in again from his scuffed up boots to his dirty hair.

"Daryl." He seemed to be returning the favor as she noticed his eyes weren't exactly glued to just her face. Maybe she was seeing it all wrong, but she couldn't help but hope he found her in the least bit attractive.

"I'm 18, just to let you know. Legal adult. So, maybe you could lay off on the 'Barbie' and '15'." Beth kept as straight a face as possible as she lied between her teeth, placing her hands on her hips now. She was only 17 but she would be 18 in a couple months. Summer was practically right around the corner. If she played her cards right…

Daryl shifted his weight as he slightly made a face and cleared his throat. "Alright, whatever you say."

"Is that so hard to believe?"

What on earth was she doing? Here she was thinking she couldn't wait for Shawn to pick her up and take her home—home where she would be safe and not have to worry about some creepy guy emerging from the bar and trying to rape her. Now she was talking to who could potentially be that creepy guy, flirting with him. Beth Greene didn't flirt. She barely knew how to, being the innocent one skating by in life and doing what she always had to. And now she had resorted to flirting with a thirty-something year old man?

The faint little smirk played on his lips again as he shook his head. Maybe she was beginning to see it as a challenge. Sure he was attractive but he was the complete opposite of what her daddy would ever even begin to approve of. He wasn't even the typical guy Beth found attractive herself—the bad boy with the greasy look and motorcycle—he seemed more like Maggie's type. Maybe this all fell back to the whole 'the more you can't have something, the more you want it' scenario, being told you can't have it so you crave it more.

It's then that she's decided she wants him. She wanted to prove that she could get him, to step outside her barrier and explore a little. This was something the average Beth Greene would never even think about doing. But this was the way she could prove she wasn't just some little girl. If she could convince Daryl, get it in his mindset, she could have him. Because really—what was stopping her?

A blue Ford Ranger pulled up beside the Sable as Beth immediately recognized it to be Shawn. Daryl must have picked up on it being her brother as well because he slammed the hood back down and brushed his hands off on his jeans.

"Hello," Shawn exited from the Ranger, eying Daryl suspiciously.

Daryl bowed his head in recognition, "You must be the brother."

"Yeah, I'm him. And you are?" Shawn crossed his arms.

"Just some guy trying to help out," Daryl replied. He started to walk away, jamming his thumb over his shoulder at the car, "Should probably get that fixed."

Beth grabbed Shawn's arm before he could even open his mouth. She knew he would be triggered to say something back in response to Daryl's sarcastic remark but she really didn't want him to start anything.

"Jackass…" Shawn muttered under his breath.


	2. Chapter 2

Upon returning home, Beth thanked Shawn once again before heading straight upstairs to her room. She threw her purse down on her bed and shut the door. Her mind was still reveling at the fact she had been flirting with that man, Daryl. There was no way she could keep this to herself. If anything, she needed to talk to Haley and hope she would talk some sense into her. She couldn't be hitting on a thirty-something year old guy. But maybe it didn't hurt…

"Hey—you're really good at flirting with guys. I need some advice." Beth had dialed Haley's number as she sat on the edge of her bed staring out across her room at the wall.

"Well, hello to you too," Haley laughed. "But um, Beth Greene? Flirting? Are we on the same page?"

"I know, I know. I can't talk to Maggie about this. She'd just laugh in my face and leave it at that. Besides, I think she's still mad."

"That's what older sister's are for. Now spill, who's the guy?" Haley sounded genuinely interested. She was always the 'go-to' girl when it came to boys. She'd had experience and she definitely knew how to draw a guy's attention. She played it off like she was an innocent country farm girl like Beth but really, she was far from it. Of course, her parents didn't need to know that bit of information because Haley was her closest friend and she had been since they were little kids.

"I went to Sasha's earlier to work on the project for Mr. Harrison's class and on the way home, the Sable broke down. I was mad at Maggie for not taking it in to the shop or having someone look at it but after today, I don't know. I'd almost have to thank her for not getting it fixed." Beth found herself laughing now that she thought about it. She wouldn't have met Daryl if the Sable hadn't broken down.

"Did he help you with the car? You're going to point him out tomorrow at school, right?"

"He looked at it but… I think it'd be a little impossible to point him out at school, seeing as he wouldn't be there." Beth bit her lip. Now she was becoming more and more curious how Haley was going to take it.

"There's no other high school around here, unless…" Haley paused. "Oh my gosh, Beth! He's older?"

Beth scrunched her face even though Haley couldn't see her through the phone, forcing a small "yeah" to escape her mouth.

"You mean to tell me you of all people were hitting on an older man? Beth Greene, I am proud of you! How did you manage that one? I mean, heck, what does he look like?"

"I don't know? He was tall, definitely a biker guy, he kind of had that… greasy, biker look." Beth paused for a moment, sighing. "Is it bad that he's most likely in his thirties?"

"You're kidding!" Haley gasped over the receiver. "Okay, no seriously. Are you making this up right now?"

"Normally, I would say yes. But I'm not. He exists."

Before she knew it, her bedroom door was opening and Beth drowned out everything Haley was saying to her in that moment. Her mom stood in her doorway with the kitchen towel in hand, smiling.

"Hey, I gotta go. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" Beth hung up and set her phone down next to her, smiling back at her mom. "Yes, mommy?"

"I just thought I'd make sure you were okay. You took off in such a rush once you and Shawn got back. He said there was some older guy messing around with the car?"

"He was just trying to help, that's all. It's alright," Beth nodded.

"I'm just glad you're okay. Shawn told me this happened right outside of Jake's Bar. Your father and I have heard horror stories about that place… You know you could have called us to come pick you up, right?" Her mother tossed the kitchen towel on her shoulder and folded her arms in front of her chest.

"I know, mom. I'll remember that if it happens again."

"Let's hope it doesn't," her mom smiled as she turned on her heels and closed the door behind her.

\- - -

"You want to do what exactly?"

"Keep your voice down. I don't want anyone else to know," Beth turned to Haley. She was leaning against the locker next to Beth's as a grin slowly crept across her face. The hallway was full of other students and faculty—the last thing Beth needed was for someone to overhear Haley talking about Daryl at school. That wouldn't go over well.

"Sorry, it's just that I'm having a hard time believing this. You're going to convince this guy—what?"

"I'm going to convince him that I'm not just some little girl. I'm tired of all of you making fun of me." Beth shut her locker and shifted her textbooks in her hands.

"You do realize this could go one of two ways," Haley crossed her arms. "He could be an absolute pig or the complete opposite—he won't do anything with you. I've had my fair share of both and either way, I don't want to see you get hurt."

Beth rolled her eyes, "I'm not going to get hurt. It's just a little fun."

They started to walk down the hall together, weaving in and out of all the people. The freshmen were still easy to spot since more than half of them still hadn't figured out how the hallway traffic worked: keep to the right. There were only two more months left before summer break and it went without saying, Beth couldn't wait.

"How are you even going to see him again?" Haley questioned, a good question at that.

Beth shrugged, "I guess I'll just have to go back to Barksdale. I was already thinking about it really."

"You're crazy."

Before either of them could say anymore, Jimmy had spotted them coming from the opposite direction. He waved as they returned the favor, joining them.

"Hey, ladies. Beth," Jimmy smiled. "…Who's crazy?"

Haley smacked him on the back of the head, "I'm here too ya know. Name's Haley." She joked. "Can't Beth and I have our own little conversation without anyone butting in?"

"Of course. Just thought I'd ask," Jimmy shrugged.

The bell rang and the three dismissed each other for their next class. Four minutes between classes was hardly enough to talk to friends, especially when wanting some privacy in doing so. And as Beth took her seat in her chemistry class, she couldn't help but grin. Haley thought she was crazy—that was a first. Maybe she didn't think she could do it. Regardless, Beth was going to prove her wrong. She'd prove everyone wrong. She wasn't just some country girl, 'farmer's daughter'.

Challenge accepted.

\- - -

Everything seemed to work out perfectly once Beth got home that afternoon. She didn't have any homework and her original plan to try and see Daryl again was looking to slowly fall into place. Maggie was out with some friends, leaving the Sable behind—which their dad and Shawn had managed to fix up and bring back home. The problem? Spark plugs. Exactly what Daryl had mentioned it most likely was.

Beth had already grabbed the key to the Sable when she approached her mom. "I'm gonna go over to Sasha's again. Our project still needs a bit more work."

Her mother smiled, "Okay, that's fine. Just try not to be out too late." Luckily, she left it at that. If she had said anything about the actual project, Beth would have felt guilty for lying—though she technically did already. But she wasn't hurting anything by taking a little drive.

"I'll be home later," Beth kissed her mother on the cheek before she grabbed her purse from off the dining room table and headed outside. The air was hot and muggy, but that was typical for Georgia. As she walked towards the Sable, her eyes scanned over the vast empty field. Sometimes she wondered what it would be like to live closer to the city and have actual neighbors right next door.

Beth sat in the driver's seat and shut the door, throwing her purse into the passenger seat and sticking the key into the ignition. This was really the first time she had ever fibbed to her mom. She was leaving to do something her family would disapprove of. It was clear as day that Shawn wasn't too fond of Daryl based off his appearance, and if Shawn wasn't too fond of him, there was no chance in hell her parents would be. She would have to keep this a secret from them if she wanted to keep at it. She was determined. It almost felt like a bet, like a dare she had been forced to. If she didn't succeed at it, then she'd feel at an absolute loss. How was she ever supposed to make a living for herself and break out of her siblings' shadows? To break out of the traditional Greene family name?

Before she knew it, she was putting the Sable into park just outside of Jake's Bar yet not too close to the doors. She was more off to the side of the building as she shut the engine off and sighed. Her heart was racing in her chest and her hands were shaking. He was attractive and that's all she knew about him. Why was she freaking out?

_Maybe because I'm not used to this…_

She didn't realize she was holding her breath when she saw a figure emerge from the bar. She exhaled once she noticed it wasn't Daryl. But he did follow right behind the guy not a minute later.

Beth watched as the two men had a small conversation of the sorts. Whatever they were talking about, it must have been humorous to some extent. She could see Daryl grin as the other guy punched him in the shoulder before hopping onto one of the motorcycles. Suddenly she was hoping she could make him grin like that. The look suited him.

There was a brief roar of a motorcycle as the man Daryl was talking to left. This was Beth's chance. If she was going to take it, it had to be now. She had to act before another guy came around or before he decided to leave himself.

Beth forced her legs to move as she exited from the car. She locked it and tried to look as calm and collected as possible while she moved towards him. He wasn't looking in her direction but she was almost certain the closer she got, he'd notice her movement from the corner of his eye.

Surely enough, he did.

"Barbie? What're you doin' here?" Daryl turned to her in that moment, squinting his eyes.

Beth forced a smile and she swore her lips quivered with a nervousness that only seemed to escalate at the proximity of him. "I was driving through, thought I'd stop. I don't think I thanked you yesterday."

"Got the problem fixed, huh?" Daryl looked passed her at the car. He brought his attention back to her, "Ain't no big deal. Didn't fix nothing, just mostly talked."

"Well, I enjoyed your company." Beth gazed into his blue eyes that were staring back into hers for just a brief moment before he glanced away. Was he nervous too? Or was she just looking too far into it? Maybe he was uncomfortable?

Daryl scoffed while digging his pack of cigarettes from out of his pocket. He placed one on his lips while glancing back down at her, "Shouldn't you be in school or something?" He lit the cigarette before putting everything back away, taking a drag.

"It's 4 o'clock in the afternoon," Beth narrowed her eyes and forced a small laugh.

He shrugged, "Whatever."

Once she realized he wasn't going to say anymore after that, she racked her brain for a conversation starter. She had to push on. She couldn't let their talk fall flat and stand there looking like even more of an idiot…

"So how long have you been riding? Your motorcycle."

Daryl raised an eyebrow but he didn't question her antics, which she was thankful for. Maybe he was alright with talking to her after all. "Probably since I was your age. It's still holding together though. Laid 'er down a time or two when I was younger."

Beth glanced over towards the motorcycle she assumed was his. Now that he mentioned it, she could see a few scuffs across the gas tank and a slight dent. "Ouch?"

"Nah, I was being a jackass. S'my own fault, I deserved it." Daryl took another drag of his cigarette.

"I'd hardly say you deserved it." Beth smirked, "Were you trying to show off?"

She caught the slightest grin cross his lips, "Maybe a little. Mostly inexperienced at the time. Now it's just the other assholes on the road."

"Yeah, definitely," Beth agreed. "People aren't very courteous on the road."

"That's why ya gotta be a defensive driver." Daryl smashed the cigarette out with his boot and looked back at her, chewing on the corner of his mouth. "I was actually gonna leave. Got somewhere I gotta be."

Beth tried not to show her frown. Pouting wouldn't move her forward in his book. Instead, she bit her lip. "Oh…"

"But hey," Daryl caught her attention. "It was nice seeing ya, Barbie. And try not to get stranded again."

"It's Beth," she reminded him. "And I'll try not to. If I do, let's hope you're there to help, right?"

"Beth… Got it," Daryl smirked. "Don't get your hopes up. I ain't Spiderman—my spidey senses don't tingle when there's danger."

Beth stifled a laugh, partially because she wondered if any of his other senses were tingling. The thought made her grow warm in the face and she knew there was no way she could hide her blush against her soft white skin.

She noticed Daryl even seemed to blush a little after her and then she felt mortified that he could read her thoughts. He chuckled, a full blown smile now etched across his face and showcasing his perfectly straight teeth for the first time. He pointed a finger a Beth, "That probably wasn't my best choice of words…"

Beth smiled, "Maybe not but it was cute."

Daryl shook his head and sighed. He mounted his motorcycle and glanced back at her. "See ya 'round, Beth."


	3. Chapter 3

Here she was sitting in class the next day and all she could think about was Daryl. He had been on her mind since she technically met him. It had been two days and she wasn't even sure she was making a whole lot of progress. She did get him to blush though, and smile. Lucky for her, that image was still in her head.

Beth had been patiently waiting for the bell to ring. There was still five minutes left of class and hardly anyone was paying attention, their stomachs doing most of the talking by now. Lunch period was next and it worked out perfectly that Haley had the same lunch as her. She needed to track her down before they went to the cafeteria though because she wanted to keep this strictly between the two of them. She couldn't imagine how Jimmy would react if he knew, though they really only dated for three months. But the feeling was mutual and they decided to just be friends. Beth was kind of thankful for that because Jimmy was a nice guy—just not nice enough to know everything going on in her personal girl life.

When the bell finally did ring, everyone jumped from their seats and flooded through the door. Beth had sent Haley a text during class to meet her at her locker before lunch, hoping she got the message. She headed downstairs to her locker and put in the combination just as Haley had popped up beside her.

"Hey," Haley leaned against the locker next to Beth's. "Oh—you saw him, didn't you?"

Beth couldn't help but let a little smirk pass her lips as she tossed her books into her locker. "Yeah, and I wanted to talk to you about it. The whole scenario." She grabbed her cold lunch from the top shelf and shut her locker door, turning to face Haley.

"Well, go on already. I'm dying to know what happened. That smirk must mean something good," Haley smiled.

"He keeps calling me 'Barbie'. And I did get him to kind of blush," Beth admitted. "He said something about Spiderman and spidey senses and it made me think of… well, something else. And so I ended up blushing which I think made him blush. I think he got a laugh out of it."

"Nicknames are always a good sign," Haley started. "But 'Barbie'? That's kind of adorable. And I would say you are set. If you can make him laugh, that has to mean he likes you. I read it somewhere or something…"

"Really? I just thought laughing was a natural thing to do?" Beth questioned. She felt like her face was growing warm again at the mentioning of 'good sign' and 'he likes you'.

"I don't know, I'm not too great on keeping up with my sources. But it sounds like you're doing good."

The hallways were slowly clearing out now as one third of the students went to lunch and the rest went back to class. The lunch period was split up into A, B, and C. Beth was more than happy to have A lunch, especially with a time like this.

Haley led the way down the hall as they took their time waking to the cafeteria, keeping their voices low. "So did you have a question or something?"

"I'm not sure what to do now. I can't keep using Sasha as an excuse to get out of the house for a few hours. And it's Friday. It's going to be Friday night."

"Tell your 'rents you're spending the night at my place. Then you can have all the time in the world to try and talk to this guy," Haley suggested.

"I don't know… Is it creepy to keep going back like I am?" Beth felt she already knew the answer to her own question and Haley's shrug only confirmed it. "Ugh, it totally is! I can't keep doing this. He'll think I'm a freak."

"Hey—okay," Haley snapped her fingers, smiling. "I'll come pick you up later after school and we'll go out for a while, stop by this place on the way. Is there somewhere close by we could go to that isn't as obvious?"

Beth racked her brain. She hadn't really been paying much attention to the surrounding location either of the times she had been to Barksdale. "Uh, I think there's some kind of diner?"

"Then we can go there and keep our distance. Maybe you can kind of study him a bit. I think it'll be easier for you to approach him if you kind of know what he's like."

Beth frowned, "But I have no clue what he's really like and that still doesn't help me. How am I going to actually see him again without it being at that bar?"

"It's a work in progress. I can't help you unless I know more about him too. And I know nothing about motorcycles or any of that. I have no clue."

"Okay," Beth nodded. "So our next plan of action is to try and find out more about him, got it."

"It's like a secret mission," Haley laughed. "We're the next special agents—we can join Team James Bond." They entered into the cafeteria as the clatter of plates and silverware filled their ears, along with all the chatter. The smell of food only made them that much hungrier.

"You've never even seen that movie," Beth giggled.

"Yeah, well you haven't either. So, ha!" Haley crossed her arms, sticking her tongue out.

\- - -

As soon as Beth got home from school, she wasted no time going straight to her dad and asking for permission to spend the night at Haley's. Not that her mom would say no, she just felt she had a better chance asking her dad. After all, she was a daddy's girl.

Her dad gave her a perplexed look, "I'm beginning to think you're trying to avoid us with all this running around you've been doing."

"Please, daddy? I don't have any homework and I haven't had a sleepover with Haley in a long time," Beth chimed. "It's a girl thing, you wouldn't understand."

"Is that so?" Hershel chuckled. "Then I suppose I better let you take care of your business."

Beth threw her arms around her father and hugged him before she kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, daddy! You're the best!"

"Don't let mom hear that. You won't hear the end of it," Shawn joked as he entered the dining room. He jingled his truck keys in the air, "I'm going out too."

"Alright, alright. You kids are growing up too fast," Hershel smiled.

Beth smiled in return as she walked away to call Haley and let her know everything was a go. She headed outside to wait on the porch in the meantime. It would only take Haley about fifteen minutes tops to get there.

She watched as Shawn hopped into his truck with his cell phone pressed to his ear. Beth had a feeling he was up to something as well, that maybe he was seeing someone. He was always weird like that. He never came right out and said he was dating anyone, like it was a surprise. Maybe she was a girl that their parents would disapprove of too. Or it could very well have nothing to do with dating—Beth was clueless about her brother sometimes.

Beth spotted Haley driving down to their house shortly after Shawn had left, jumping to her feet. She grabbed her purse and already started walking out towards Haley's car.

"Antsy much?" Haley joked, turning the music down in her car as Beth climbed into the passenger seat.

"You have no idea," Beth tucked her hair behind her ears, flashing a grin in Haley's direction.

\- - -

"Okay, hang on—slow down—" Beth panicked, sinking down into her seat. "The bar is right over there. Don't go too close."

"Whoa, okay okay… take a breather over there," Haley laughed. "No wonder you came to me for help."

Beth covered her face, "I told you I can't do this. This is humiliating." She felt the car come to a halt as she glanced out her window and noticed Haley parked outside of the diner just down the road.

"You can do anything you set your mind to. Besides, nothing is stopping you," Haley encouraged. "Now, do you want to go inside the diner to creep or do you want to stay here?"

Beth looked out towards the bar cautiously then back to the diner. "Maybe just stay here. If we need a quick getaway, all you have to do is drive away."

"Oh, stop!" Haley pinched Beth's arm. "There's nothing to worry about. Nobody is going to see you way over here."

"Maybe…" Beth sighed.

"Point him out. Who is he?" Haley questioned as she stared out the window and blindly grabbed her fountain soda sitting in the middle console.

Beth scanned the area over in search for Daryl. He wasn't anywhere outside that she could see. Then she squinted her eyes to try and get a better view of the motorcycles and frowned, "He's not there."

"What do you mean? How do you know?" Haley turned to look at her.

"His motorcycle isn't there. At least none of those look like his anyway." Beth rescanned the row of motorcycles and still came up empty.

"Aw, come on… It's Friday night. Shouldn't he be at the bar getting wasted?" Haley crossed her arms.

The thought suddenly struck Beth. "Maybe he has a girlfriend. Maybe he's in a relationship already and he's out with her at this very moment."

"No way, I refuse to believe that. Unless he gave you an absolute no—which he didn't—he has to be single."

"I can't believe I didn't think about this sooner. This whole idea was dumb. He's good looking and he owns a Harley, of course he has a girlfriend already. What would he want with a seventeen year old?" Beth propped her head against her hand, her elbow resting on the doorframe.

"…He has a Harley?" Haley slowly turned to face Beth again as Beth playfully smacked her arm.

"Is that all you got out of that?"

"No, it was just a bonus… But all I'm saying is there's no way to tell for sure he has a girlfriend unless you just come right out and ask. Or if you see him with a girl. Don't assume—assumptions never end well."

"I guess," Beth glanced back over at the bar one last time and froze. "Is that—that's not who I think it is. Is it?"

Haley quickly turned back to the bar and stared, "Oh geez. Pinkman? Isn't he in your chemistry class?"

Beth nodded, her eyes wide. "Yeah, but what's he doing here? He's not old enough to drink. Why is he at a bar? Why is he at this bar?"

Haley shrugged, "He sells coke or something, doesn't he?"

"I don't know. I think meth. You think that's what he's doing?"

"Could be but again, there's no way to tell unless you ask. Which speaking of asking," Haley smiled, "Talk to him."

"What?—" Beth stared at her. "I can't talk to Jesse Pinkman—what am I supposed to say?"

"He's in your chemistry class, partner up with him, make him talk. He blabs a lot. I'm sure he knows your guy. You could get the lowdown on him."

Haley had a point. Beth hadn't thought that far ahead. If Jesse was at this bar, maybe he was there on a fairly regular basis. And assuming that Daryl was a regular there as well, they had to know each other, if not, at least acquaintances. It was a start.

"Okay, I'll try to talk to him in class. But for now, can we just head back to your house? I doubt Daryl's going to show up if he isn't already there," Beth gave in.

"Yeah, that's fine. We may not have made as much progress as we would have liked but it's still progress." Haley started her car back up and got it back out on the road.

"I feel like I'm going to need some Ben and Jerry's comfort," Beth forced a small laugh though she felt like she could cry. What was it with her and these damn emotions all of a sudden? Just because Daryl seemed like a really nice guy and he was attractive didn't really mean anything.

He didn't really seem to match his image though—maybe that's what was throwing her off. Before she just thought it would be fun to rebel and see if she could actually lure him in, some older 'bad boy' type. Now she found out that he might have a girlfriend. She felt pathetic. How could she have suddenly fallen for him when she barely even knew him? She felt like she was going crazy.

"I don't know if I actually have Ben and Jerry's specifically, but I do have ice cream," Haley offered. "And I have plenty of movies to keep ourselves occupied with too."


	4. Chapter 4

The weekend only seemed to drag on before Monday finally reared its ugly head. She hadn't seen Daryl since Thursday, talking about motorcycles and spidey senses. The memory still made her giggle. She couldn't believe she had really thought about that. But after Friday, she wasn't even sure she could keep pursuing him. She had a funny feeling that maybe he was already in a relationship. It was pathetic that the thought hadn't occurred to her sooner, and the fact that she was beginning to wonder if he even remembered her.

Haley had briefly reminded Beth of the current task at hand, and that was to talk to Jesse Pinkman. Haley tried to get her pumped up so that she wasn't as nervous to approach this kid but it really didn't work because she was now sitting at her desk flaking out. Jesse was at the next desk over and she couldn't even make herself turn to face him. Great.

Beth tried to think through some different scenarios on how to talk to Jesse. She wasn't even sure why she was so nervous to talk to him. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she knew he was involved with drugs, the fact that if people saw her talking to him they would start to assume something. Of course, that was just silly.

"Yo, didn't I see you at Jake's?"

She wasn't imagining things and no matter how many times she blinked, Jesse was staring at her. She felt her face glowing red. Jesse wasn't exactly quiet.

"Yeah… Yeah, it was you! I saw you last week and you were talking to that one guy."

Beth put her hand up to cover her reddening face, praying to God that the rest of the class was too involved with their own bits of conversation.

Luckily, Mr. White finally made his appearance and instantly quieted the class down. By the looks on everyone's faces, Beth was in the clear. No one in particular was staring at her due to Jesse's words. But Jesse couldn't leave well enough alone.

He slightly leaned forward, whispering, "If you're looking for a little… something. I got what you need." Beth looked over at him, horrified, before his eyes grew wide and he started shaking his head, "No, that came out wrong—You know what I mean, right?"

Beth forced a small nod. At least he clarified that he meant meth and not hooking up. But this was a start. Jesse started talking to her first so now she could at least make a conversation without seeming too weird. She just had to wait for the right time.

Mr. White gave his lecture for the first half of class talking about different elements and bonds. It all made perfect sense to Beth as he explained it and drew little pictures up on the chalkboard. She kind of enjoyed chemistry and having Mr. White as a teacher only made it that much more enjoyable because he really got into it. It made learning the subject easier.

Just as suspected, Mr. White had everyone get into pairs to work on an in class assignment. Beth knew this was her chance and she wasted no time in taking it as she immediately jumped to the empty seat next to Jesse.

Jesse leaned back with his eyebrows raised, "So you are interested?"

"Not about that," Beth lowered her voice. She cut right to the chase, "What do you know about… Daryl?"

Jesse shrugged, "Not much. I mean, the man keeps to himself. I've talked to him on a few occasions. Seems nice enough. A lot nicer than his brother. But I guess I can't complain, he gives me business. Least when he's around anyway."

"Daryl or his brother?" Beth chewed on the inside of her mouth.

"Mr. Pinkman and Ms. Greene, you mind working on the actual assignment at hand?" Mr. White planted his hands on the desk leaning over.

"Whatever, Mr. White…" Jesse sighed.

"Having Beth as a partner in this class might do you some good," Mr. White stood back up straight. He mumbled as he walked away, "Couldn't hurt your grade anymore than what it already is."

Beth turned back to Jesse, "Well?"

"Well what?"

"Daryl or his brother," Beth repeated herself. She was curious and she needed to figure out as much as she could. If she kept pressing on, maybe Jesse would ramble more.

"His brother. I don't think Daryl's a user, if that's what you're trying to get at," Jesse paused. "Isn't he like… I don't know, old enough to be your dad or something?"

Beth turned her attention to the paper in front of her and shut Jesse out, changing the subject. "Okay, so we have to construct molecules out of these. You want to go ahead and do the first one and I'll start working on the second?" She grabbed the few pieces she needed from the box to construct the molecule before she realized Jesse was staring at her, dumbfounded. "You do know how to make molecules out of these, right?"

"No, yeah—of course…" Jesse muttered. He reached into the box and grabbed a few different pieces, setting them on the desk in front of him. He glanced over at Beth as she was still watching him and sighed in frustration, "Okay, I don't. Sue me. I know water is H20. That's about as far as I'm getting with this 'molecule' science shit."

Beth rolled her eyes. Now she understood what Mr. White meant. Jesse certainly needed some chemistry help.

\- - -

"So did you talk to him?" Haley found Beth at her locker once school was out for the day.

"Yeah, and he doesn't know much. Just said that he seems like a nice guy, that he's nicer than his brother. I feel like we're back to square one—and slightly on the verge of stalking."

"Nah," Haley waved her hand dismissively. "Stalking is a harsh word. I like to think of it as… collecting data. And you learned that he has at least one sibling and you have Jesse's opinion of him."

Beth laughed, "'Collecting data'? I guess. But honestly, what do you think? Should I just give up? I mean, how much of a chance do I really stand with him?"

"Well… I'd give up if you feel like pursuing this further is going to hurt you in the end. That's all I can say. I don't want to be the shitty friend that keeps pushing you to do this and then it all falls back on you in the end. This could go either way right now. You don't know for sure if he's single or not, though I'd bet you he is single." Haley checked her phone before throwing it back into her purse, "What are your plans for the rest of the day?"

Beth was still trying to register everything that Haley had just said before she could answer. "I'm staying here for a while to help out with the yearbook committee. After that I have no clue. I'll probably just go home and call it a day."

"So you're not going to try and find your guy?" Haley smiled.

"He's not my guy. I wish," Beth sighed. "If I'm gonna still try, I don't want to creep him out. I was just thinking that maybe I should give it some time and then try going back to that bar."

Haley nodded, "Sounds like a good plan to me."

\- - -

The yearbook committee meeting lasted for a couple hours by the time they had gotten everything accomplished that needed to be. It was close to five o'clock once Beth had headed out to the parking lot to retrieve the Sable, which she was beginning to claim as her car now since Maggie always took their dad's Suburban. And of course, it was raining.

After running through the rain and being pretty well saturated by Mother Nature, Beth was ready to just be home. The weather had actually caused a bit of a temperature drop, and though it felt nice, a hot chocolate sounded pretty good.

Just as she reached the car, she noticed it was slightly leaning to the left. It didn't take her long to realize the front left tire was going flat. She sighed in frustration as she got into the car and tossed her things into the passenger seat. She must have run over something at some point and it was just now starting to show.

"Hey, Shawn?" Beth called her brother before she even started the car. "You know a bit about cars. My front left tire is going flat. Should I try to drive home or…?"

"If it's going flat, I wouldn't try to drive all the way home. A tire is one thing. If you screw up the rims because you're driving around with a nearly flat tire, then you're going to have problems. Expensive problems, might I add."

"Well I'm guessing I must have run something over but it's not completely flat or anything. It's lost quite a bit of air though. Should I just leave it here or can I try to drive it to that auto shop on Radford?" Beth rested her head against the steering wheel and closed her eyes. At least the sound of the rain was relaxing.

"If it doesn't look too bad I'd say go ahead and try to make it to the auto shop. It's not too far away and as long as you drive slow you should be fine. Do you need me to come meet you there?" Shawn sounded a bit concerned.

"Um, I think I'll be okay. I have my charge card, so… All I'm doing is getting the tire replaced, right?"

"Yeah, just do that. Shouldn't be too much of a hassle. Call me if you need me." Shawn paused, "Oh—and drive with your flashers on. It should help keep the assholes from riding your bumper and make you more visible in the rain."

Beth smiled, "Okay, Shawn. I'll call you if I need you. Thank you."

She hung up and placed her phone in the cup holder. It was a good thing she remembered that automotive shop. She was really only aware of it somewhere in her subconscious mind from passing it every day on the way home from school. It wasn't too far away and like Shawn had said, she'd just take it slow.

Beth got the car started and immediately put her flashers on before driving out into the road. The rain drowned out the country song that was playing on the radio. All she was thinking about now was getting this tire replaced, getting home, and making some hot chocolate while lounging around the house in her pajamas. Just thinking about that really made her realize how much of a boring life she led. But she had been on the go for the past few days or so, she was ready to just take a little break.

Before she knew it, she was pulling into the automotive shop's lot. Her eyes were drawn to its name for the first time as she read "Teller-Morrow" in red and yellow above the garages. There were still a few vehicles out front and she assumed that was a good sign, meaning that they were definitely open. But it would probably mean she'd have to wait a while.

Beth parked the Sable outside and made a run for what she assumed was the service desk area. Once inside, she rubbed her arms and briefly glanced around. The only person she saw was an older man with gray hair wearing some black leather vest.

"We're getting ready to close shop, unless you're picking up." That same man turned to face her. Apparently he worked there after all.

"Oh," Beth frowned. It wasn't that late. "Okay. Sorry… Would it be okay if I just left my car here? It has a flat tire."

"Seems like that's your only option, isn't it?" The man smiled at her and Beth wasn't sure if he was just trying to be friendly or if he was being sarcastic.

Beth nodded, "Well, thanks."

She started to walk back towards her car so she could call Shawn back and let him know. It wasn't like she had any other option. She couldn't drive it and if this place was getting ready to close…

Just as Beth grabbed the door handle she heard someone call out.

And it took her a minute before she realized that someone was calling out to her. More specifically, that someone was calling her "Barbie".


	5. Chapter 5

Without even a thought, Beth started walking towards the garage from where the voice came from. Daryl’s voice. She was walking towards Daryl. And she was definitely freaking out internally, doing her best to hide it.

“You stalking me or something?” Daryl placed his hands on his hips, eyebrow raised. He was wearing what appeared to be a gray button up work shirt with a little path that read ‘Teller-Morrow’ on the upper left hand side. His jeans looked similar to the ones she had seen him wearing the first day she met him with the knee missing, same boots, and a rag hanging from his back pocket. The only thing that was different was that he literally looked like a greasy biker guy now with dirt and oil on his hands and clothes. 

Beth stopped a few feet away from him inside the garage, “No—I didn’t know you worked here? I—the Sable—“ She stumbled over her words as she pointed out to the car. 

Daryl narrowed his eyes in what looked to be a questioning manner, “Again?”

Beth nodded, “That older guy told me you guys are getting ready to close though.”

“Nah, don’t worry ‘bout it. I’ll stay, figure out what’s going on with this possessed car of yours.” Daryl pulled the rag from his back pocket and wiped his hands off. 

“Really?—It’s just a flat tire this time though. I can just call someone to pick me up, it’s no big deal.” She just now realized she was trying to talk him out of helping her. Him, alone. Why was she trying to talk him out of it? Maybe she was just that nice of a person, not wanting to burden anyone. Maybe too nice.

“Flat tire is an easy fix. And I have no problem with staying.” Daryl paused, slightly looking himself over before looking back to Beth. “Since you drove it here, I’m guessing it’s not too bad yet. You mind pulling your car into this stall? I’d offer, but you’d probably prefer to keep the interior looking fairly nice.” 

“Yeah, sure,” Beth smiled. She gripped the car key in her hand and as soon as she turned away from him, she grinned, fighting the urge to scream. Maybe this car was some kind of good luck charm in the most peculiar way. It kept bringing her to Daryl. Wasn’t that considered destiny or something? Maybe she was taking this too far. 

Beth started the car back up and pulled it into the garage stall that Daryl had mentioned, him giving her guidance on where to pull in at and how far to pull forward, lining up between the two bars on the ground. She shut the engine off and Daryl was already working on lining everything up right as she got out of the car. 

While Daryl was messing with the lift, Beth stepped back and took a glance around. The other guys who were there were now walking around shutting everything down and closing doors. Once all of the doors were closed, including the garages, she figured it was a good thing that she wasn’t claustrophobic. 

One of the guys walked over towards Daryl catching Beth’s eyes. He had fairly long blonde hair and a bit of facial hair to go with it, a similar black vest like the older guy was wearing in the service desk area. He looked over at Beth and provided her with a little smirk and wink before turning to Daryl. “I know I don’t have anything to worry about with you being here, but just make sure to lock up when you’re done, Dixon.”

“Will do, Jax,” Daryl nodded. Jax patted him on the back before he walked away, exiting the garage. She could only imagine if Haley was there—she would be trying to follow Jax home. And Beth wouldn’t blame her because he was pretty good looking too. 

While Daryl was messing with the controls to raise the car into the air, Beth pulled her cell phone out to text Shawn:

Hey, everything’s okay. Getting car fixed now. Might be a while. Maybe cover for me?

She slid her phone back into her pocket and smiled over at Daryl just as he released the control. 

“What? I got something on my face?” Daryl rubbed his arm across his cheek.

Beth giggled, “No, no. You’re good. Just… thank you. Thanks. For helping and everything.” 

Daryl shrugged as he stepped around to the left front of her car and started working on getting the tire off. Beth felt her phone vibrate in her pocket and she pulled it out to see what Shawn had to say.

Why? The mechanic good looking? lol I’ll cover.

Beth quickly put her phone back in her pocket and prayed that she didn’t start blushing again. Her blushing problem was a curse and it was far too easy to set it off. 

“The car’s actually my sister’s. I think it’s safe to say that I’ve pretty much taken it from her though.” Beth rambled off the first thing that came to mind, breaking the silence. A pretty dumb topic starter. 

“Almost seems like you should have been robbing your brother of his vehicle. At least it works,” Daryl turned to Beth and smirked. “Any other siblings?”

Beth smiled faintly at the vehicle comment. “No, just Shawn and Maggie. We’re actually all half siblings. Different parents, it’s kind of confusing.”

“I have a half uncle, so I know what you mean.” Daryl managed to remove the tire and set it on the ground, inspecting it. 

“What about you? Do you have any siblings?” Beth questioned as she watched him roll the tire looking for the puncture. 

“I have an older brother. Merle. He’s in jail, as usual…” Daryl muttered. “Found your problem. You ran over a nail, so it’s most likely been there for a while. Good news is I can patch it rather than getting you a new tire.”

Beth nodded. What Jesse had told her so far matched up: Daryl had an older brother. But she was trying to read him, trying to figure out what he was thinking. By the sounds of it, he didn’t have too great of a relationship with his brother. And if she wasn’t mistaken, it almost felt like he was changing the topic on purpose. 

“Kind of a shitty day with the rain and everything.” Daryl rolled the tire over to a machine and set it onto it. And before she knew it, he had the tire popped off of the rim and was working on getting the nail out.

She disagreed with him about it being a shitty day. Yeah, the rain made things a bit gloomy but she was here with him, wasn’t she? She couldn’t complain. This was actually the highlight of her day.

But of course, her mind started to run again. She was back on the track of thinking he had a girlfriend and she wanted to know the truth. If he was in a relationship, she couldn’t keep trying to go after him. If he was single, then he was fair game. Why was she thinking like this? This wasn’t like her.

Before she could think it over, the words slipped from her mouth, “I hope your girlfriend isn’t going to be mad with you staying.”

And there it was. She had struck the wrong chord. Daryl stopped what he was doing and looked over at her. “What?”

“I… thought you had a girlfriend?” Beth bit her lip.

“No, I don’t…” Daryl scratched the back of his neck. “My last uh, ‘relationship’ didn’t end so smoothly.” 

“Oh? I’m sorry to hear that,” Beth frowned. Sure she was glad he was single but she was hoping whatever he meant by ‘didn’t end so smoothly’ didn’t currently affect him. 

“S’no big deal. It was like a year ago now…” Daryl slightly laughed, shaking his head. “She was some uppity lawyer. Just getting out of law school really. We had a little too much to drink and things got out of hand. Haven’t really talked since.” He paused, “Why am I telling you this?”

“Because I’m a good listener?” Beth forced a small smile. 

“I suppose so, Barbie,” Daryl flashed the tiniest grin before he went back to work on fixing the tire. Normally she would feel the urge to correct him—if he were anyone else. But the more she heard him call her that, the more she seemed to like it. It was her designated name given to her by him. 

“So I guess this kinda explains how you know so much about cars?” Beth walked over closer towards him and sat on a wheelie stool. 

“Yeah, I guess. My dad passed along some knowledge, and my brother. The rest I just picked up on my own over time,” Daryl shrugged. By this point, he had the nail out, the tire patched, and was putting the tire back on the rim. 

“You don’t sound like you’re very close with your family,” Beth stated, swiveling the stool back and forth.

“I’m not.” Daryl paused, staring down at the tire and sighed, “Hang out with my uncle a lot. My half uncle. We go huntin’ every so often. Trying to make amends with my dad. And Merle… he’s just Merle.”

Beth stopped herself from asking about his mom. If he didn’t bring her up, she figured there was a reason why. So she kept her lips sealed. 

Daryl aired the tire back up before he was rolling it back towards the car again. This marked the first time he had actually walked passed her and she tried to hide her goofy grin. He smelled oddly good. And by oddly good, she meant engine oil, cigarettes, and coffee. Not what she would normally consider an attractive scent, but it was kind of unique. 

As she continued to watch him, she had an internal war with herself and what her next move was. She wanted to flirt with him but she had no idea what to do or say. But the other part of her was arguing that she needed to take things slow. She didn’t want to come off as a creepy stalker. If she tried flirting with him now, what would he think? 

He’d probably think she was crazy.

“Well, it looks like you’re all set. Just have to get your car back on the ground and you’re good to go,” Daryl informed her, brushing his hands off on his jeans. He walked back over to the controls and lowered her car down. 

“You made that seem way too easy for being a flat tire. Though I guess I can’t say I’ve ever watched someone work through that process.” Beth got back on her feet and slowly walked over towards him.

“Like I said, flat tires are a pretty easy fix.” Daryl chewed on the side of his lip as he cast a glance back over towards Beth. “Hope Clay didn’t give ya a hard time. He’s been on edge here lately.”

“That old guy with the vest?” Beth asked. 

A little smirk passed Daryl’s lips, “Yeah, but I wouldn’t ever call him old to his face. I made that mistake when I first started working here. Called him ‘old man’ and got smacked in the head for it. Not saying he would ever hit you though.”

“So in other words, I’m protected because I’m a girl,” Beth crossed her arms, smiling.

“Here? Yeah,” Daryl nodded. “The guys here are cool. The guy you saw, Jax—he’s a bit of a flirt but he’s harmless.”

Beth could agree with that statement considering the man gave her a slight smile and wink. “And what about you?” 

“What about me?” 

“I’m guessing you’re not the flirty type?” Beth tucked her hair behind her ears and tried to keep her composure. This was where things got tricky for her because she had no idea what she was doing or what she was planning to accomplish. 

Daryl scoffed, “Oh yeah, I’m a real prince charming.” He opened the garage door, allowing the sound of the rain to intensify as it beat down onto the pavement just outside the walls. “Well, like I said you’re free to go.”

“You’re not charging me?” Beth questioned. She felt a little indifferent about him seeming like he was trying to get rid of her. But if he worked on her car for free, maybe she had it all wrong. Maybe he was just really hard to read. She didn’t have a clue how he felt about her—if he found her attractive, thought of her as a friend, an acquaintance, or if there was possibility for something more. And the curiosity was slowly killing her, tearing her apart. 

Daryl shook his head, “Consider it on the house, or whatever. It’s not a big deal. Really.” He was leaning against the wall now with his arms folded in front of his chest. 

“Okay,” Beth spoke quietly. “Thanks, Daryl.” She smiled at him and she felt her heart flutter in her chest speaking his name. It was the first time she had ever addressed him by his name and for whatever reason, it felt good. Daryl Dixon. It had a nice ring to it. She had Jax to thank for providing her with the knowledge of his last name, unbeknownst to him.

Daryl gave a little nod, “You have any other car problems, I guess you know where to find me.”

Beth had to remind herself to drop it and leave it at that. She was almost positive guys had this thing where they always had to have the last word and she was going to give him that. She couldn’t freak out, she had to stay calm. 

So Beth gave him one more small smile before she hopped into the Sable and it took everything she had to just put the damn car in reverse and go home.


	6. Chapter 6

The way Beth saw it, she had two people she could turn to for help involving Daryl: Haley and Jesse. Haley was practically her coach when it came to this sort of thing, but Jesse? She could figure out a way to get more information from him. He had to know more than he was letting on with him being at that bar every so often. And Beth was a bit determined to find out.

Beth made it to chemistry a little earlier than what she normally did, having to cut Haley short, telling her she would catch her up at lunch. She wasted no time at all claiming the seat next to where Jesse had been sitting the past few weeks and waited. If she was lucky, Mr. White would be running a little behind before getting to the classroom himself—hopefully giving Beth more time to talk to Jesse. One thing she never thought she'd be doing in the first place.

"Uh… okay?" Jesse set his textbook down on the table next to Beth, brow furrowed. "What's up with all of this?"

"What, I'm not allowed to sit here?" Beth questioned him.

"Nah, it's cool. I was just… confused is all. So why are you sitting over here?" Jesse took a seat and slouched down in his chair.

Sadly, Beth had already thought most of this through. "What if I… made a deal with you."

Jesse raised an eyebrow before sitting up and leaning on the table, clearing his throat. "What kind of deal we talkin'?"

"I help you with chemistry so you don't fail this class, and in return you do a little research?" Beth stared at Jesse as he seemed to ponder at the thought.

"What exactly do you mean by research? Like legit book stuff or…?" Jesse scratched the back of his head.

Beth smiled, "No, nothing like that. More of a recreational type of research."

"You want me to spy on someone?" Jesse narrowed his eyes.

"I want you to kind of maybe keep tabs on… Daryl," Beth lowered her voice as she said his name, like it made a difference whether someone overheard their conversation or not. It wasn't like someone in that room knew who Daryl was—well, other than Jesse. She stopped him before he could protest, "I just want to find out a few things, no questions asked. And you have to keep this between us."

"Yeah, sure. Whatever," Jesse sighed. "I suck at this chemistry stuff and I really don't need another failing grade."

Beth found it to be quite interesting that Jesse wasn't too great at chemistry yet she was certain he had an alias as Captain Cook—meaning he was most likely the one to make and distribute whatever meth he had. Though he surely had help in doing so.

"Can I at least ask why you're so interested in this guy? I mean… you of all people, it's hard to believe."

"No questions asked, remember?" Beth turned her attention to her notes and flipped to the page Mr. White had left off on during the last lecture. If she was going to do this, she'd even have to prove to Jesse she could follow through. There was no turning back now. What needed to be said had been said.

"Right, no questions," Jesse repeated her. "But what am I supposed to do?"

Beth bit her lip to hold back a laugh, "You're still asking questions." Jesse sighed in frustration staring at her. "Just gossip. I'm sure you've seen or heard some things going on, right?"

"I heard his brother is supposed to be getting out of jail soon. Like… real soon," Jesse tried.

"Do you know what he was arrested for?" Beth spotted Mr. White making his entrance three minutes after class began. He hurried over to his desk muttering apologies for being late before flipping the attendance book open.

Jesse shook his head, "Probably something to do with drugs and assault. I'm pretty sure he's punched a cop in the face before."

Beth nodded, a little shocked in all honesty. She didn't know much about Daryl and she knew absolutely nothing about his brother, Merle—other than the fact that he apparently had a track record for being arrested. Jesse thought Daryl seemed a lot nicer than Merle though, so that had to count for something. She didn't think anything bad of Daryl herself after being around him a couple times.

"I don't really know what you're planning to do but I feel like it's only fair that I tell you he's been talking to another girl. I've seen these two talking on a few different occasions anyway," Jesse confessed, staring down at the table in front of him.

Mr. White had finished taking attendance and jumped right into the next lesson. Of course, Beth's attention had been immediately drawn to Jesse's words.

"He's talking to another girl?" Beth's voice wavered as she cursed to herself mentally. Now wasn't the time to fall apart in a pathetic heap of emotions over words that meant nothing—or rather, should mean nothing. Daryl told her that he was single.

Jesse shrugged, "As far as I can tell. He's left with her a couple times. And uh, things might change once Merle is out too."

Beth stared back at him, perplexed. Things might change? What did that mean? And Daryl's left the bar with this girl? Was Daryl a liar? Her mind was now running wild with all of these different thoughts and questions. She was beginning to feel like the closer she got to figuring Daryl out and trying to get closer to him, the more she should start running in the opposite direction. Maybe he wasn't worth it?

"And if I wanted to… try and continue whatever it is that I'm doing?" Beth tried to find a way to ask him how she could possibly see Daryl again. She was going to have to start thinking outside of the box and make sure to keep a fair amount of time between when she did see him. She couldn't just keep popping up. The incident at Teller-Morrow was mere coincidence.

Jesse appeared to be focused on Mr. White's lecture but Beth knew better. He was formulating his own response to Beth's question. "There's some kind of festival next weekend in Sedalia and there's gonna be a car show Saturday evening. You'll most likely see him there."

Beth sat back in her seat and smiled. There's no way that could have worked out any better. A festival with a car show next weekend. Something that wasn't completely unusual for her to attend and it worked out perfectly with the timeline, not being too soon.

And for the rest of the chemistry lecture, Beth was in her own world trying to come up with a plan.

\- - -

"Is Jesse really a reliable source though? The more I start thinking about all of this, the more I'm beginning to question it. He's a druggie," Haley put it quite bluntly, shrugging as they walked down the hall towards the cafeteria. Beth had filled Haley in on everything she knew starting with the auto shop to Jesse's conversation, give or take.

"But he's been around Daryl and his brother. And it's not like he could make up some random girl. He's telling the truth," Beth backed Jesse up.

"That's just it too: 'some random girl'. So she's been seen with him on more than one occasion? Doing what? And she's been seen leaving the bar with him?"

"I didn't really ask specifics but it sounds like they've been talking, yeah. But Daryl told me that he wasn't dating anyone."

"Well, he could be a liar. She could be his sister. Or they're just friends," Haley suggested, running through all the possibilities. Beth had a feeling she was biting her tongue on that one though because she knew it didn't sound good.

"She's definitely not his sister. He said he only has an older brother." Beth didn't even want to comment on the other two because no matter how she approached those topics, she didn't see it ending well. Of course they could be 'just friends'—it wouldn't be uncommon. But Beth did have to keep her mind open and be willing to accept the fact that he could be a liar…

Haley sighed, "This is kind of pissing me off to be honest. I need details. If she was flirty with him, then I want to just outright punch the guy for even talking to you. All I can say is that I hope they're just friends and he's being honest with you. Or else I will have to give him a piece of my mind."

Beth smiled. That was the one thing she loved about Haley; she was always so protective. She was the type of girl who wasn't afraid to speak her mind and go after what she wanted, and Beth admired that. Haley was brave and she always had her back.

"I guess if it does all turn south, you just might get the chance to do that?" Beth laughed as she watched her best friend slowly turn to face her, eyebrow raised. "Jesse told me there's a festival next weekend in Sedalia. There's gonna be a car show and he said Daryl will most likely be there."

"So I am definitely coming with you and then we can put this concern to rest," Haley smiled now. "Good! I've been dying to see what Daryl looks like. You've been leaving me in suspense. I mean, you couldn't just sneak a picture on your cell phone or something? And the hot guy from the auto shop!" Haley exclaimed, clamping her hand over her mouth as they both shared in a laugh.

"It's possible that Jax could be there too," Beth admitted. She had told Haley about there being an attractive guy that worked at Teller-Morrow with Daryl. Unlike her, Haley actually did have a thing for the grungy motorcycle-riding bad boy type. Maybe it was just a newfound liking for Beth.

"You have no idea how excited I am now! This is going to be fun. We can enjoy the festival itself, get some food, take a little stroll. Then we'll just go casually check out the cars because what girl doesn't like to look at pretty cars?"

"I think you've confused 'pretty cars' with pretty guys who own those cars," Beth joked.

"Well, there's always that too. But hey—who's complaining?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I know. I'm a really slow builder. But we're getting there, I promise!


	7. Chapter 7

Beth kept herself busy for a week and a half with friends, schoolwork, and helping Jesse with chemistry. Now it was finally the day she had been waiting for: Saturday. And not just any Saturday, but the Saturday of the so-called festival in Sedalia where she would hopefully run into Daryl.

"So we find the car show and we're good to go, right?" Haley walked alongside Beth as they approached the crowds of people, clipping her car keys onto a belt loop. She had offered to drive seeing as her car hadn't been having any problems lately. It wouldn't do any good if the Sable decided to have another issue while on the way to this place, the complete opposite direction of Teller-Morrow.

"Yeah. I'm sure it's probably set up away from all of this chaos." Beth shielded her eyes from the sun and scouted the surrounding area. She couldn't see a whole lot from where they were standing other than a bunch of festival goers, tents, food stands, and rides.

Haley nudged Beth, "Pinkman at two o'clock."

It took Beth a moment to register what Haley was saying before she looked over and saw Jesse. She smiled and waved once he seemed to lock eyes with her from across the way, Jesse waving in return.

"That kid really gets around," Haley commented. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you two are making quite the cute couple."

"Oh, please," Beth rolled her eyes to add emphasis. "He's nice and all but I'm only helping him so he'll help me."

"I'm just teasing. But if all else fails, he is pretty good looking. Just needs a little bit of rehab and voila!"

Beth continued walking while having to make sure Haley was still following. The closer they became to the car show, the more distracted Haley was becoming.

"Dude, check out the arms on that guy!" Haley half whispered, leaning closer to Beth.

"Will you stop?" Beth tried to hold back from laughing, giving Haley a shove. "Focus."

"It would be easier to focus if I knew what we were actually looking for. I have no idea what he looks like, remember?" Haley stuck her tongue out at her.

They walked a little further before Beth could make out a row of motorcycles and a black van. She recognized some of the men around there from Teller-Morrow but specifically narrowed in on Jax.

Beth nudged Haley now, "There, by the motorcycles. That's Jax—the one with the blonde hair. I'm sure Daryl's somewhere around there."

Haley provided Beth with a low growl, "Hot damn, Jax is hella fine. I should have brought my car in to be serviced. I don't know what for but I'm sure I could have found something."

Beth couldn't help but laugh at Haley's comment but stopped short when she spotted Daryl. He was sitting on the tailgate of an old Ford truck with a brunette woman sitting next to him. Beth assumed she must be the woman Jesse was talking about, feeling her heart sink a little. But there wasn't any close contact or signs of affection. That had to mean something, right?

"Is that him? On the tailgate?" Haley was staring over at him now as Beth nodded. "And the chick?"

"I don't know. I guess she's the girl Jesse was talking about."

"Well, let's go find out, shall we?"

Beth's heart began to race inside her chest, grabbing Haley and pulling her back. "No—stop. We can't. I can't. Not with everyone else around."

Before Haley could protest Beth's words, they stayed put right where they were and watched as another man walked over towards the group. The man looked to be close to his forties, tall, strong build, and also sporting sleeveless attire. He carried an opened beer in hand as he made his way over towards Daryl and the brunette woman. Beth noticed that this man's appearance must have grabbed everyone's attention that was nearby because Jax was now walking over towards the three—and none of them looked too thrilled.

"Holy tension. What do you think is going on?" Haley leaned towards Beth as she spoke, their eyes glued to the scene before them. Luckily they were far enough that the group didn't notice them among the other festival goers. But with the distance, they also couldn't see everything that was necessarily happening nor hear anything anyone was saying to each other.

Beth shook her head, "Apparently they're not too great of friends with that guy…" It was stating the obvious but she didn't know what more to say. Daryl, Jax, and even the woman all looked pretty on edge as this man was saying something to them. They all had something to say but in the end it was Jax who had managed to get the guy to take a walk, leaving the group alone.

Haley started walking as casually as possible over towards them as Beth was forced to follow. And as they moved in a little closer, Beth could hear the woman speaking to Daryl while patting his knee:

"Don't let him get to you. You've come a long way."

Beth could see Daryl slightly purse his lips before nodding and glancing over at the woman as she provided him with a weak smile in return.

Beth had to once again stop Haley from walking any closer, her heart hammering in her chest more and more with each step. Jax now walked over and hopped up onto the tailgate beside the woman. He leaned over and briefly shared a kiss with her before digging a cigarette out from a pocket on the black leather vest he was wearing and lit it. Jax took a drag and passed the cigarette to Daryl, exhaling the smoke away from his apparent girlfriend. They were conversing but they were too quiet to be heard from where Beth and Haley stood.

"That works. She's not with your guy, she's with mine," Haley sighed before stifling a laugh. She was joking of course because Jax was never hers—just like Daryl was never Beth's. But Beth certainly had her eyes on Daryl.

"And how exactly are we suppose to join them when there's like ten other guys around?" Beth looked to Haley, waiting for her expertise to show. It didn't take much thought for her to formulate an answer.

"Follow my lead," Haley smiled. She walked over towards the row of motorcycles and folded her arms. She pretended to look like she was in deep thought while admiring the bikes as Beth stood off to her side, glancing from the bikes to the men who were slowly catching onto them.

"Biker gang came to town. Nice rides," Haley announced loud enough for a handful of the men to hear her.

One guy in particular caught a glimpse of Haley and smiled, walking over towards them. "Yeah? And who might you two ladies be?" He too was wearing a vest similar to Jax's—as the other men were. He had his head shaved down with a short thick mohawk on top of his head, tattoos on either side.

"Just two girls enjoying the sights and sounds of a festival," Haley was looking this guy over as a smile crept across her face at the sight of him. "I'm Haley. This is Beth."

"Juice," the man smiled in return, his teeth perfectly straight and white.

"Your name is Juice?" Beth questioned him, raising an eyebrow.

"Well… yeah," Juice nodded.

Two more guys walked over to join Juice. One looked a bit younger with fairly curly sandy blonde hair and the other wore a black stocking cap, sporting a dark beard and a chain dangling from his hip, most likely attached to a wallet in his back pocket. But when Beth saw that Daryl, Jax, and his girlfriend were heading over towards them shortly after, she couldn't pay any attention to what they were saying to Haley.

"Alright, c'mon Barbie…" Daryl rested his hands on his hips as he sounded slightly exasperated. He played it off with a smirk.

Beth smiled, "I swear I'm not stalking you." Though really, she partially was—but he didn't need to know that. He recognized her first of all and he approached her first. That was enough to put in her a good mood.

"Hey, I remember you. You brought your car in to TM. You two know each other?" Jax glanced between the two.

"We've met before. Jax, Beth. Beth, Jax," Daryl replied, giving a short introduction.

Jax extended his hand and shook Beth's, smiling, "Nice to meet ya."

"Yeah," Beth nodded. His girlfriend was even providing her with a smile.

"Hi, I'm Tara. It's nice to actually meet another woman around here. Or should I say women."

Beth was glad to see that everyone at least seemed friendly though it didn't completely ease her nerves. They were all older than her and Haley—probably close to their ages combined. But the group apparently didn't mind because they never mentioned it. Or maybe they looked older for being seventeen.

Beth introduced Haley to Tara, Jax, and Daryl while Haley introduced Beth to the other two men who had approached her with Juice. The sandy blonde guy's name was Half-Sack and the one with the stocking cap went by the name Opie. Beth couldn't help but wonder if they were lying about their real names or if it was just some weird nickname that had something to do with the whole biker appearance. Half-Sack's nickname was explained, to which Beth thought they were joking at first. Turned out they were one-hundred percent serious and Beth could feel her face turn fifty shades of red. It was a pretty straight forward name.

There was some brief conversation here and there before everyone broke up into smaller groups and did their own thing. Jax and Tara were the first to take off while Haley was still talking to Juice. Beth had Daryl close by and she knew it was her turn to try and pull the cards. She caught Haley's attention, both of them exchanging a brief glance and nod. Haley would be alright with Juice and she was okay with letting Beth do her own thing with Daryl. Beth was just glad Haley was able to find a guy that she seemed interested in.

"So I was thinking about taking a little walk," Beth began, glancing back at Daryl. "Would you like to accompany me?"

Daryl seemed to ponder the idea a moment, staring back at her. He then provided her with a slight nod. "Sure."

It wasn't the most reassuring response but Beth took it. There was something about the way he was looking at her. It kept her on edge because she wasn't sure how to read him. He didn't say a whole lot and though she wasn't sure he liked her, she had a feeling that maybe he did, that he would have pushed her away by now if that were the case.

As Beth started to walk away with Daryl and away from Haley and the others, she felt nervous. This was all on her now. She was on her own with no guidance. But she was passed the feeling of Daryl being some creepy guy from the bar that could potentially rape her. She was just paranoid that day and when she looked back on it, she couldn't help but laugh.

Except she hadn't meant to actually laugh out loud.

"What's so funny?" Daryl was staring over at her again as she felt her face flush. She might as well become a permanent shade of red around him.

"Nothing. I was just thinking it's funny how we keep running into each other. It's nice." Beth smiled up at him seeing as he kind of towered over her. She caught the slightest smirk pass his lips. She continued once she realized he wasn't going to say anything in response, "So what brings you here? Assuming you aren't here for the actual festival." Nor the car show Jesse had mentioned.

"That obvious, huh?" Daryl rubbed the back of his neck. "I can't really say there's a reason. Just get out for a while. 'People watch' I guess."

"And here I thought I was the only one," Beth replied. When she looked back at Daryl though she quickly realized he was fixed on something else—or rather someone else. She tried to line up with his sight to see who it was and she froze when she spotted Jesse. Surely he wasn't staring at him.

"…I'll be right back." Daryl narrowed his eyes before casting a glance at Beth as she provided him with a nod. And he started walking right towards Jesse.

Beth tried to remain calm but she was panicking on the inside. Did he know she had been talking to Jesse? That she was getting information from him? No, that couldn't be it. Daryl knew Jesse—Jesse had even said so. They'd talked before. Beth was secret safe.

It was when Jesse noticed Daryl approaching and it looked like they were talking that Beth felt her heart pounding in her chest. Why was she freaking out over this? Jesse wouldn't say anything to Daryl. Not about the little arrangement Beth had made. Then she was frightened Jesse would say something about her in general. He could let it slip that he knew Beth and that they were in the same class together. Jesse knew Beth's true age.

Before Beth could lose it any further, she abruptly turned to look away from the two. Only she ended up smacking into another figure. Quickly raising her hands in front of her, she apologized. But her eyes grew wide at the sight of the man once she noticed he was the same guy from earlier, the man who seemed to be harassing Daryl when he was sitting on the tailgate with Tara.

"Mm, now I'd like to know where my baby brother found you." The man grinned, "Always tryin'a hide the pretty ones from me."

Brother? This man was Daryl's brother? Just by looking at him, Beth could tell it wasn't a surprise he just got out of jail. Now that she was standing in front of him, she could see a slight similarity between the two. And he smelled like booze.

"Merle!" Daryl was heading back now to Beth's relief. She took a couple steps back unnoticed while Merle was looking over in Daryl's direction. "The hell you think you're doin'?"

Merle put his arms up as if to surrender, "No harm no foul. Ain't that right, sweet cheeks?" His words were directed at Beth. Daryl looked pissed as Merle chuckled. "We was just chattin' s'all. Told her you're always hidin' the good ones."

Beth felt extremely out of place in no time flat. She wasn't sure if she should say or do something to make them stop, or if she even could. Daryl was now red in the face for the first time since she had been around him. She wasn't sure if it was because of Merle's presence or what he was saying. Maybe he was embarrassed to be caught with her? But he didn't seem to mind around his friends.

"Just go." Daryl sighed as he rubbed his face. Surprisingly enough, Merle seemed to listen. He didn't walk away until after he looked Beth over and licked his lips, a grin plastered on his face as he turned to leave.

"Your… brother is quite the character," Beth managed to find her voice. Her eyes followed Merle until she knew for certain he was gone and wasn't coming back.

"Yeah, he's something," Daryl shook his head.

Staring at Daryl, Beth wasn't sure what came over her. None of Merle's words stuck to her. If he was trying to get her to run away, it just wasn't working. Because there was something about Daryl that she had become attached to. She couldn't quite place a finger on it. It wasn't necessarily because of his looks or that he was older. But she had no idea why she felt such an attraction to him. It drove her crazy.

Maybe seeing him blush was a little bit of a turn on since it was usually the other way around.

"Just ignore him. I'm not going anywhere." Beth decided to go bold and come straight out with it. It was the approach she should have tried long ago. At least this way she would know if he reciprocated the feeling. He could either go with it or he could shoot her down. She was prepared for it to fall either way at this point.

Daryl's attention was definitely brought back to Beth after what she said. His eyes were locked onto hers as she really started to notice for the first time that his eyes were a really pretty blue. Normally she would have faltered by now. She would have broke eye contact and ran the other way. But she stood her ground. In fact, she shuffled her feet forward some, closing the gap between them.

Beth felt his hands meet her hips just as she leaned forward. She placed one hand on his shoulder while the other brushed against the side of his face, easing herself up onto her tip toes in order to move forward. She slowly planted her lips against his and closed her eyes.

Even though she felt tense and she could tell that Daryl was too—at least it was a start.


	8. Chapter 8

Even though the kiss was small and very short lived, Beth was still basking in all its glory two days later. Daryl hadn’t pushed her away. It was a start and that was all that mattered to Beth at this point. That kiss proved one thing: he liked her back. She didn’t care how childish she sounded about it. That trivial fact had her wanting to push on even more—and she planned to, once she was out of school for the day.

She was on her way to chemistry now, running behind more than usual since she stopped to chat with Haley briefly. Haley approved of Juice and the other guys that were hanging around that day, which was a good sign since Daryl was friends with them. But she had her mind set on figuring out the mystery behind why Daryl had spoke to Jesse at the festival.

Upon entering the classroom, Mr. White had yet to make an appearance while Jesse was already sitting at their table. Beth smiled as she made her way over to him and took her seat. “So what did Daryl say to you?”

“Yeah, hi. I guess we’re no longer on a person to person basis here. Ya know? Like a ‘hi, how are you’ type deal?”

“Sorry…” Beth bit her lip. Jesse had a point. She should try to be a little friendlier towards him since he was kind of helping her out. She wouldn’t normally jump right to it but she was dying to know—she didn’t want to beat around the bush.

“Is this gonna be like an everyday basis, yo? ‘Cause I—“

“Jesse,” Beth interrupted him and forced a smile, “Please?”

Jesse slouched back in his chair with an exasperated sigh, “It was just some shit about his brother, alright? Nothing that concerns you.”

“So he doesn’t know that you know me? And that you—we are doing… whatever it is that we’re doing?” Beth questioned.

“Stalking him?” Jesse clarified. “He doesn’t have a clue. He just told me to stay away from his brother and that’s all I know. So if he has the impression that we know each other, that’s all on you.”

“So he doesn’t know anything about me from you then, right?”

“ _Right_. Jesus, is there something going on here that I don’t know about?”

“You think he cares about any sort of age differences?” Beth glanced over at the door just in time to see Mr. White walking in. She turned her attention back to Jesse in hopes of not sounding too desperate—though she was pretty sure she already exceeded that threshold. 

“You lied about your age,” Jesse stated matter-of-factly. 

“I told him I was eighteen. It’s not like it’s that serious, one year off. I didn’t want to lie and say I was in my twenties, it would have been completely obvious.” 

Jesse shrugged, “You could probably pass as a twenty-something. But how would I know his preference in women? I mean, don’t you have a girl friend or something to talk to about all this?”

“Okay, yeah. Sorry…” Beth apologized again. She was shocked that Jesse thought she could pull off being twenty-something. Maybe if she put a bit of make-up on and got dolled up. It just wasn’t for her. She had grown up on a farm after all. Being extremely girly wasn’t one of her top priorities. 

Beth flipped her notebook open and prepared herself for the day’s lecture. “To answer your earlier question, it’s not going to be a daily thing for much longer.”

Jesse smiled now, “Yeah, I gathered that when I saw you two lip locked.”

\- - -

To reiterate what Beth had learned from Jesse, Daryl knew nothing that was going on. He was unaware that she knew Jesse and he apparently still thought she was eighteen. So Beth was still game for pursuing him. 

Beth had called her dad to let him know that she would be home later. She avoided discussing details as Daryl Dixon wasn’t a valid option with her family. The plan was to try Jake’s Bar on the way home in hopes of spotting either Daryl’s motorcycle or perhaps that blue Ford pickup that he was sitting on at the festival. 

Lucky for her, she recognized the truck parked outside the bar as she pulled up next to it and parked the Sable. 

Beth exited her car and made sure it locked out of habit before heading for the door. He kissed back, that meant something. And she was determined more now than ever to make sure she didn’t lose her progress. Even if she didn’t truly know what in the world she was doing. Perhaps proving she was brave enough to even enter the bar. That was a start. 

Once inside, the smell of cigarette smoke and alcohol was a bit overwhelming as it breached her senses. She just reminded herself that she wouldn’t be there long. She just had to find Daryl and whatever happened from that point on… well, she wouldn’t be disappointed. 

Beth tried to ignore the looming eyes that were glued to her the moment she stepped foot inside the place. It didn’t take long to realize that she was maybe one of four girls total among the sea of testosterone ranging from various ages. A man who looked to be in his mid-twenties whistled at her which sent a flaring heat across her face. As long as none of the men acted out of line and approached her…

But of course it wasn’t that simple. She couldn’t see Daryl anywhere or any other familiar face that she had met over the week’s span. Maybe she was so nervous that she was somehow overlooking them. 

Beth felt an arm close around her back, pulling her into the man’s shoulder that had a hold of her. When she looked up at him she realized she had never seen him before in her life. Her eyes were quickly scanning for an escape route, something to use to get this guy away from her—anything. 

“Hey, darlin’,” the man purred by her ear. He smelled of cheap liquor and tobacco. “What say you and I get to know each other, yeah?”

Beth ducked down and out of his grasp as she made a beeline for the exit. So maybe she was too chickenshit to step foot inside the bar after all. But this was the type of man she was afraid of when she met Daryl. The drunk guy that wanted to disappear somewhere and ‘have a good time’.

A small yelp escaped from her mouth once she felt that same man grab her arm and yank her back. “I thought we was on good terms? Not many women come ‘round these parts. I’ll be real gentle.” He was trying to coax her which in turn made her stomach churn. She couldn’t force any words from her mouth. Her lips felt like they were sealed shut. 

Before the man could say or do anything more, there was another jerk towards his direction before he let go of her arm. It took Beth a moment to comprehend that the man had been pulled away from her—and by none other than Daryl. 

She took a couple steps back before she froze, watching as Daryl grabbed the guy by the collar of his shirt and pulled him close in a threatening manner. She could see Daryl’s lips move but she couldn’t hear a word he said to the guy as the man smirked. It wasn’t long after that when Daryl threw a punch to the guy’s face. 

Apparently that was all it took in the “Bar Universe” because that single punch had led to an uproar. Beth stared wide-eyed as it quickly turned into a fight. Somehow among the chaos that had ensued she spotted Merle and Jax, though looking to be on opposite sides of the spectrum. Another man tried to attack Daryl in order to save the guy who was already receiving quite the beat down but Merle intervened. Jax on the other hand stayed out of it though looking rather annoyed. 

“Everybody else keep your damn feet planted where they are. It’s just a little friendly fight.” Jax spoke over top all the noise. Beth noticed his hand was resting by a rather large knife encased in a sheath and attached to his belt. No wonder everyone decided to stay put after Jax stepped forward. Beth wasn’t even sure if it was technically legal to be carrying a blade like that.

It wasn’t long until things began to settle down. As soon as Daryl locked eyes with Beth, she panicked. She retreated into herself and bolted outside towards her car. Though she had no intentions of leaving without at least speaking to Daryl, she couldn’t stand in that bar another minute longer. She could feel the eyes burning a hole into the back of her head. She was the cause of all that. 

Beth was halfway to her car when she heard the distinct voices of Daryl, Merle, and Jax following not too far behind. She stopped and turned to see what was going on, unsure of what to do. 

“I got it, alright? Just ‘cause you’re back now don’t mean shit to me. It’s the same goddamn thing on repeat!” Daryl had whipped around and raised his voice to Merle once the three stepped outside. They were accompanied by two older men just shortly after.

“What, Blondie over here was gonna really step up and do something about it?” Merle scoffed, the ‘Blondie’ comment referring to Jax. 

Jax stepped forward now, getting in Merle’s face, “Daryl had it handled. Don’t you try and tell me I pussied out in there. I’ve had your brother’s back more times than you can count.”

“Well you can jus’ kiss my lily white ass—“

“Alright children. Let’s take it down a knotch, aye?” One of the older men placed a hand on Jax’s chest and gave him a push backwards, making Jax step back. He had what sounded like an Irish accent, dark gray hair and goatee with sunglasses perched on top of his head to keep his hair back. 

“That dumb bitch shoulda known better than to come onto this turf,” Merle remarked. The slightest smirk crossed his lips as though he were trying to make the confrontation into a challenge. Which apparently worked because Daryl lunged at him, fueling another fight. 

Beth felt like she had been planted smack in the middle of some movie. She had never seen a real fight before, nor had she ever been termed a “dumb bitch”. The words didn’t even sting in the slightest as her mind was still focused on what was happening in front of her, still trying to register everything. 

Jax and the Irish guy moved to break them up but the other older man who was present physically stopped Jax by grabbing him by his vest. “Chibs, Jax, _let ‘em_. They need this. Let ‘em hash it out.” 

“At a bar in broad daylight? Not here and not now. The last thing we need is for Grimes and Walsh to show up around here again.” Jax broke out of the man’s grasp and pulled Daryl back, attempting the best he could to break it up. Chibs looked to the other man with curly black hair and shrugged before helping Jax. Between the three, they were able to break Daryl and Merle up. 

This was certainly a whole new side of Daryl she never expected to see—the anger, the fighting, and his brother; the relationship he had with him. It was all a little scary at first but when she took a step back and really looked at the whole picture, she felt bad for him. Maybe even a little heartbroken. There was a lot more to him than she would have ever guessed. He wasn’t just some guy who was a mechanic. He had layers, and Beth couldn’t help but wonder if that was why he was so hard to break through to. 

Daryl walked away from everyone without a word and seemed to be headed straight for Beth. She stayed put, staring all the while until he brushed right passed her and kept moving for his truck. And before she could even think, she found herself reaching out and gently grabbing his arm. He stopped walking and cast a glance in her direction. 

“I’m sorry…” Beth practically whispered. She couldn’t turn away from him, her eyes pleading to allow her to come with. She wanted to be able to make things right since she took the blame for the bar fight and the events that escalated after. If she would have just went home instead of coming here…

For whatever reason, Daryl gave her a nod towards his truck, signaling her to get in if she really wanted to. And Beth didn’t hesitate to follow as she climbed into the passenger side.


	9. Chapter 9

It was quiet from the moment Daryl got in his truck and started driving. Beth didn't dare open her mouth to say anything first. She wasn't even sure _what_ to say other than she was sorry, which she already covered. So she stared out the window and watched as the buildings passed by.

Before long they were on some country road in the middle of nowhere with nothing around. Beth clutched her purse tighter and kept her eyes glued to what was outside of the truck rather than who was sitting beside her operating the vehicle. What was she thinking, going into the bar like that? What did she expect?

Beth mentally cursed at herself as she chewed on her bottom lip. She screwed up and she couldn't even look over at him. She should have never gotten into his truck and went with him. She should have never gone after him in the first place. She's seventeen, not twenty-seven. Her high school ways would never be able to compete with women who were the appropriate age for Daryl. Hell, Daryl was practically old enough to be her father.

She should have just run the other way and never looked back.

Sure it would have hurt but it would've been the best thing for both of them. Daryl couldn't be annoyed by her and she could go after someone who was more appropriate for her—and someone her family would approve of, someone she wouldn't have to hide. But no matter how much she thought about it and how different they were from one another, she still wanted him. She liked him for reasons she couldn't explain. Calling it "love at first sight" would be a joke but she felt attracted to him from that moment on.

The terrain suddenly changed as the truck's tires hit a dirt road and the truck came to an abrupt stop shortly after. Beth lost her train of thought as gravity propelled her forward, her purse falling onto the floor by her feet as she quickly put her hands up on the dashboard to stop herself from what felt like flying out the windshield. Apparently she was full of stupid decisions today because she hadn't even put her seatbelt on.

"What were you even doing there to begin with?"

Beth situated herself back on the seat and slowly turned to face Daryl. She almost felt relieved to see that he wasn't looking over at her, but he was rubbing his face. The way he had asked the question didn't seem too friendly. His voice had more of a growl to it than what it usually did when he talked to her. That alone had Beth fidgeting. "I… was hoping to see you."

Daryl forced a laugh. "What is it with you? Why do you keep following me like a damn lost puppy?"

Beth began to slightly pick at her jeans, lowering her head. A part of her wanted to yell back at him for being mean but that was childish. In all honesty, she was a bit frightened—and it took her until now for it all to catch up to her. She was in his truck with him out in the middle of nowhere with no one around. She still didn't know him all that well and now that they were alone and confined in the cab of his truck, she could smell a hint of alcohol on him… which made her realize she really shouldn't have let him drive let alone get in the truck with him in the first place.

"I like you," Beth replied quietly. She already felt pathetically hopeless so she figured she'd go ahead and let Daryl get a good laugh out of it.

"You don't even know what you're talkin' about." Daryl still had a bite to his tone but he didn't laugh. Beth was well aware that the male species was confusing but Daryl seemed to be the icing on top of all things confusing.

"No, I do. Just… stop being so hard on yourself. I care about you."

"If you're trying to get something from me, I ain't got shit."

Beth bit her lip, "You care about me too. Otherwise you wouldn't have done what you did back there." She changed the subject which in turn brought Daryl's attention back to her. She suddenly found her breath being caught in her throat while it felt like her stomach was doing acrobats. His blue eyes searched hers as she eased herself closer to him. She figured this was the last chance she had to try and change things either for better or worse. If he didn't want to talk about what just happened back there at the bar, then that was his choice and she wasn't going to make him. If he wasn't going to make the first move, then she would just have to prove herself.

Beth managed to firmly plant her lips on Daryl's and share in their second small kiss. Only this time, Beth wasn't going to just leave it at that. As she moved in for another kiss she could feel Daryl slightly twitch, trying to pull away. They were already at an awkward angle but Beth moved her shaky hands to hold his face and kept going.

After a couple short kisses, Beth progressed a little. She started to use her tongue and let herself explore his mouth. The more time passed, the more she began to feel the tension slowly leave Daryl's body. He was beginning to ease up a bit and Beth couldn't help but smile as she kept her mouth pressed against his.

Daryl placed his hands on her sides and maneuvered around, making Beth lie down on her back while he was on top of her, straddling her while kissing the entire time. Beth could now taste the alcohol that was on his breath as her heart felt like it was now beating irregularly with the way Daryl had just taken control all of a sudden. The move on his behalf freaked her out but she'd be lying if she said she wasn't enjoying it. This was what she had wanted after all, wasn't it? She wanted to break through the walls he had built up around him—though now she couldn't help but wonder how much he had to drink and how much of the alcohol was doing the talking.

Once Daryl started to travel away from her mouth, across her cheek, and onto the side of her neck, Beth didn't know what to do. Her hands immediately grasped onto his shoulders. This was a first. Jimmy had never kissed her like this and she found herself beginning to panic a little. How far would Daryl go?

Beth let the worry settle in the back of her mind and decided to just live in the moment. She couldn't believe how _good_ it felt, even with his facial hair prickling her. She was trying to catch her breath between making out and feeling like she couldn't breathe with a nonexistent lump in her throat. She squeezed his shoulders and shut her eyes, the slightest half-moan half-whimper escaping her lips.

Beth grabbed Daryl by his hair and pulled him back to her, their lips reconnecting. She kept one hand tangled in his hair while the other found the side of his face. But since Beth had brought his lips back to hers, his hands started to travel instead, moving south. And when she felt his hand reach its destination she bit down on his lip a lot harder than she expected, making him jump which in turn made her jump. Daryl backed off and stared down at her for a moment.

"Oh God…" Beth muttered, covering her face in embarrassment.

"Sorry…"

Beth could feel Daryl start to move. She bit her own lip before slightly sitting up and managed to pull him back. She worked her way around and switched it up to where she was now lying on top of him. She knew she was red in the face from embarrassing herself but she pushed passed that. She wanted to prove that she wasn't just some little girl. She just wasn't sure she wanted to go _that_ far yet.

As soon as the roles were reversed and Beth was straddling Daryl, she could feel him smile as their lips connected once again. Daryl certainly didn't let up on the kissing but Beth noticed he kept his hands above her waist, this time tangled in her hair.

It didn't go on for too much longer before Beth decided to back off a bit. Daryl had a faint smile on his lips with his eyes closed. Beth sighed and smiled herself before she nestled against him. She rested her head on his chest just as she could feel Daryl wrap his arms around her, his hands resting on her back. She shut her eyes and continued to smile while she listened to his heart practically beating in sync with her own, slightly racing.

Beth never would have guessed something like that would have happened. She figured they would talk about what happened in the bar. Why was she there, why did he beat the shit out of that guy, why he has the relationship that he has with his brother— _something_. Maybe he wasn't too much of a talker… Though his hands and lips could definitely speak volumes.


	10. Chapter 10

Daryl cursed under his breath which made Beth's eyes snap open. It took her a minute to realize where she was. Once her memory caught up with her, she panicked. She was still lying on top of Daryl and they had both apparently dozed off.

Beth felt her face burning once again as she slightly shifted, carefully moving so that her hips steered clear of his. If there was such a thing as dying from embarrassment, Beth was certain that she would have dropped dead by now. She couldn't believe she had actually been the one to start all of that and that Daryl went along with it.

As Beth situated herself on the seat and glanced back at Daryl, he was rubbing his eyes. But she caught a glimpse of what looked like some kind of scar peeking out from under his shirt since the top few buttons were undone. It looked as though it went at a slight downward angle towards his chest just under his right collarbone. Beth knew that whatever happened to cause that kind of a scar wasn't an accident—it had been done on purpose, thus adding even more pieces to the puzzle of understanding Daryl.

"That wasn't… exactly how I thought things would go," Daryl admitted aloud as he sat up. "I didn't mean to—I wasn't tryin' to—"

"It's okay. It's my fault for kind of pursuing it." Beth smiled at him but he quickly looked away and got out of his truck. Her smile faded just as fast as he left the cab. Was it something she said?

Beth watched as he walked around the front of his truck and headed for the driver's side where she was currently seated after their little session. She sat back as he opened the door, staring down at him as he was waiting for her to move over. But she stayed put.

"You mind movin' so we can get outta here?" Daryl folded his arms across his chest.

"Talk to me. You said you didn't expect all of _this_ to happen. So what then?" Beth tried. She still felt like he wasn't exactly the same Daryl she had met that first day outside the bar. He still had a bit of aggression pent up inside him, his body language and tone of voice being a dead giveaway. She didn't want to push his buttons too much but she wanted to actually try and talk to him.

"You don't weigh nothin'. I could just throw ya outta my truck," Daryl warned.

"But you're not going to." Beth challenged him, folding her arms in return. She felt like she was on the verge of pouting but really she was just trying to mimic Daryl. He wouldn't toss her out on some old country dirt road. After all, he did sort of come to her rescue inside the bar.

Daryl sighed as he leaned against the open driver's side door, the hinges creaking due to his added weight. "'So what then'?" He repeated her words back to her.

"Do you just beat up guys like that on a daily basis? And your brother? What was all of that?—I mean, I know it was a stupid move with me going in there but I—"

"Yeah, it was a stupid move," Daryl cut her off. "Look, there's a lot about me that you don't know and we ain't goin' there. Not now, not ever."

Beth was a little taken aback by his choice of words. It was one thing to agree with her that it was indeed a stupid move, but for him to just blatantly state it? She narrowed her eyes at him, "And why not?"

"Because I said so. My past is of my concern and my concern only."

Something must have clicked in her brain because she was suddenly coming to the conclusion that maybe there was something wrong with him. Not _wrong_ but… damaged. He seemed okay when it didn't involve talking and now that she was trying to get him to say something, he was completely shutting her down. "Have you ever really been in an actual relationship?"

Daryl shifted his weight from one foot to the other. His facial expression appeared to soften just slightly before he returned back to a scowl. "What's that have to do with anything?"

"If you've ever been in an actual relationship that means it requires talking. And since you're lacking in that ability it has me wondering if you've ever—"

Beth was cut short again but this time it was from Daryl forcing his way back into his truck. He dug one arm behind her back and the other under her knees, practically tossing her over to the other side.

"What the hell was that for!" Beth shrieked.

"Conversation's over," Daryl stated as he sat down behind the wheel and shut his door.

\- - -

Beth remained quiet the whole way back into town. The more time stretched out, the less angry she felt about Daryl's actions. Maybe it was just a touchy subject for him. If that was the case, she couldn't blame him. Apparently being direct wasn't the way to go about things with Daryl. Or at least with some things it wasn't.

The sun was fairly low in the sky now as eight o'clock was approaching. Beth didn't bother to pick up her purse until the Sable was in view, still parked right where she left it. Daryl parked his truck next to the Sable where it had been originally and shut the engine off.

"I'm sorry for prying. I just thought that maybe we could talk and it might make you feel better. And I'm sorry for being stupid and going into the bar." Beth clutched her purse to her chest as she tried one last time to talk to him before parting ways. She chanced a glance over at him and found him chewing on the side of his mouth staring down at the seat between them.

When Daryl remained silent, Beth took that as a good-bye and reached for the door handle. She had just propped the door open a crack before Daryl finally spoke.

"You're not stupid," he paused. "I should be the one apologizing, not you."

Beth forced a smile and shrugged, "Don't worry about it. I'm sure you have your reasons." She had to keep reminding herself that there was more to him than just anger. He was a completely different person before his brother got out of jail—just like Jesse had said. Daryl was turning out to be a pretty complicated guy but Beth was beginning to find herself up for the challenge.

"You shouldn't just shrug that off." Daryl was staring back at her now.

"I am this time. But don't consider yourself so lucky if it happens again," Beth smiled. "I'll kick your ass if you want to go all antisocial on me. Throwing me across the cab of your truck." She tried to joke and lighten the mood which received a faint smile from Daryl. All this time she had been so nervous to be alone with him but truth be told, it felt like things were going fine—other than a few bumps along the way. She was being herself around him and he seemed perfectly okay with that. He stopped when she made it known that she was uncomfortable and that provided her with the knowledge that he wouldn't ever do anything to hurt her.

Beth quickly dug through her purse and came back with a pen. She clicked it open and looked back at Daryl. He didn't say anything in response so she moved closer to him and grabbed his wrist. She glanced back up at him again, locking eyes this time, but he still didn't say a word. Beth turned back to his hand and flipped it over to where she could see his palm. She smiled to herself as she wrote her cell phone number on his hand.

Beth closed his hand into a fist and rested her hand over his for a moment before leaning back enough to be able to see his face. "So you can get a hold of me and we can stop meeting up by chance," she explained. She tried to resist the urge but lost the short-lived internal war as she cautiously reached up and kissed him on the lips.

Having said and done everything she possibly could for one day, Beth threw her pen back in her purse and climbed out of the truck. She grabbed her car keys and unlocked the Sable before hopping into the driver's seat. Daryl hadn't said anything before she really left and a part of her was almost waiting for him to come running to her window and apologize for his actions and swoop her off her feet. But she was well aware that this was the real world and not some made up fairytale. If she wanted real results, she was just going to have to work on it.

\- - -

The minute Beth returned home, she was greeted by her parents, Shawn, and Maggie. Though none of them looked too happy.

"Where the hell have you been?" Maggie was the first to ask. "Did you forget how a cell phone works?"

 _Her cell phone._ She completely forgot to turn the volume back on once she got out of school. But she was a little occupied and she couldn't imagine her phone going off while she was lip locked with Daryl in his truck.

"Maggie," Hershel warned her for her choice of language.

"I told dad I would be home later. Doesn't _now_ constitute as later?" Beth bit her tongue from saying any more and tried to head for her room.

"Elizabeth Anne, we are not finished talking here," Annette called out to her.

"I'm sorry and I'll call to check in next time. Won't happen again," Beth began to ascend the stairs.

"If you keep this up, there may not be a next time," she heard her mom continue just before she entered her room and shut her door. Apparently she should have started to rebel at a younger age. Then everyone would be off her back about being out a little late. And besides, it was only a little past eight. That was still early.

Beth tossed her purse on the floor and lay down on her bed with a sigh. She wanted to tell Haley what happened but she didn't want to risk calling her and having someone listening in from out in the hall. She slid her phone open to expose the keyboard and contemplated texting Haley instead. But she found herself staring at her phone's screen almost lost in thought. She gave Daryl her number. That meant that he could call or text her at any point in time. Now she was going to go crazy just thinking about it. She didn't want to turn into some obsessive stalker, constantly checking her phone to see if he tried to contact her.

Beth sighed out of frustration and slid her phone shut, setting it beside her. Maybe she shouldn't have given him her number. Maybe that was childish. How was she supposed to know what to do and how to really act around him? She was being herself but she didn't want to seem like she was immature. There was a pretty good age gap between them and she was well aware that they most likely had nothing much in common. But that _still_ didn't change her mind any.

There was a light knock on Beth's bedroom door and before she could say anything, the door creaked open to reveal Maggie standing in her doorway. She crossed her arms as Beth sat up on her bed and looked over at her.

"What? I said I'm sorry and I'll call next time," Beth explained.

Maggie glanced down at the floor a moment before she stepped into the room and shut the door behind her. She walked over and sat beside Beth. "I get it, okay? _I'm_ sorry for yelling at you the minute you walked through that door. But we were worried since you're not usually out and about like that. Come to think of it, you've been 'out and about' quite a bit here lately…"

"I'm not allowed to hang out with friends?" Beth lied but kept a straight face. No matter how much she may or may not have sucked at lying, she knew Maggie could see right through her. Because her older sister smiled.

"You know I'm always here for you. Just don't come home crying and telling me we have to go to some abortion clinic or something. This isn't some Lifetime movie. Mistakes happen. Just... don't let some boy get into your head. Alright?"

Beth forced a weak smile, "Alright."


	11. Chapter 11

Since Beth couldn’t talk to Maggie about Daryl—though it would be so much nicer and easier—she waited until the next day at school to talk to Haley. She couldn’t risk calling her, and texting wouldn’t get the point across, so she found her that morning before their first classes even started. 

She explained everything that happened for the most part, from the kissing to the way Daryl was behaving to Beth writing her number on his hand. She included the entire scene that happened at the bar as well, trying to remember all the important details as she quickly rattled everything off to her best friend. 

“So what’s your input? Everything’s going fine, right?” Beth searched Haley’s face for an answer before she could reply. 

Haley bit her lip and scratched the back of her neck. Why did that seem like a bad sign to Beth?

“I don’t know. You said he didn’t really talk much. And you gave him your number but he didn’t give you his?” Haley questioned.

“Yeah, but I think it’s just him. _I’m_ not a big talker. I mean, not usually.” Beth tried to find a way to justify Daryl’s actions. She didn’t explain to Haley that she thought there was a lot more to Daryl, that maybe he was kind of damaged. It was only something that she observed so it wasn’t guaranteed. However, she felt like she should just keep it to herself. If Daryl was damaged, that was a bit on the personal side and Haley didn’t need to know it. 

“Has he tried to contact you?” 

“It’s not even been a full day yet.”

“But he had no problem getting _you_ alone and… making out.”

Beth felt her heart sink. She knew where Haley was going with this. “He’s not like that, I swear. He could have kept going but he stopped.”

“I’m just trying to help you out here. I don’t necessarily know the whole picture because I wasn’t there and I’m not you. I don’t know everything that’s been going on exactly. But it sounds kind of sketchy.” Haley shrugged, “I just don’t want you to get hurt. Guys can be real asses. And I want you to be aware of all the possibilities here. He might be interested in you but he also might just be _interested_.” 

“So you want me to just give up?” Beth narrowed her eyes. She tried to put herself on the fence with this one. Haley was only looking out for her. It wasn’t like she was trying to steal Daryl or anything. Haley was her best friend and she wanted to have Beth’s back just like Maggie. But everyone that Beth knew didn’t know Daryl. They didn’t see him like she saw him and no matter what she did, she felt like she was losing the war.

Haley sighed, “Not necessarily. Just keep an open mind about everything and don’t go off of appearance. Whatever you have planned next, I think you should be careful. I mean the age gap is pretty significant and he’s obviously more experienced with other things… And with you being a vir—“

“Don’t,” Beth cut her off. She buried her face and gave a half exasperated sigh. “I don’t need it announced to the whole world. I feel like being one is bad enough.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being a—“ Haley stopped when she caught the glare from Beth. She continued, forcing a smile, “There’s _not_. I’m just saying that since he’s older, that might be more his thing. Trying to pinpoint the differences between a seventeen year old and a thirty-something year old here. That’s it.” 

Beth knew Haley had a point. Daryl didn’t seem like the type to just take advantage of her. But what if she _let_ him?... Would that break down any of the walls he had built up around him? Maybe he would talk to her then if he knew she could take it. 

“Please tell me you are _not_ thinking what I think you are thinking.” Haley smacked her forehead. “Did you not hear a word I said?”

“I heard you,” Beth replied. 

“There’s nothing, I repeat, _nothing_ wrong with your current status. Please don’t think of some scheme to change that.”

“Do you regret it?” 

“Yes, I do. Because I did exactly what you’re thinking now. So don’t do what I did.”

Beth wondered if that was true or if Haley was just saying that to further try and protect her. Either way that meant Beth couldn’t ask any more questions on that topic. She was on her own. So she felt like she was stuck between a rock and a hard place trying to weigh the pros and the cons. Haley thought it would be wiser for Beth to drop everything and move on for her own safety. But she didn’t want to. She felt like she had made progress and she’d be damned if she just gave up now.

\- - -

Of course, Beth could hardly focus in any of her classes. Her mind was elsewhere and pretty much anywhere that didn’t involve what was happening in front of her. So needless to say, lunch time came pretty fast and Beth was walking down the hall with Haley once again.

Haley leaned closer towards Beth and whispered, “You’re brother doesn’t look too happy.”

Beth glanced up to see Shawn walking straight for them. Haley was right, but Shawn had no reason to be mad. Beth stopped walking and stared at him, confused until he stopped beside her and Haley.

“What’s with all this talk about you and Pinkman?” Shawn crossed his arms. 

“What?” Beth blinked. “What talk? What are you talking about?” 

“You’ve been talking to him?” 

“Yeah, we have chemistry together.” Beth noticed Shawn raised an eyebrow at her word choice and Beth rolled her eyes. “Chemistry, the class. Hydrogen, oxygen, molecules. _Chemistry_.” 

“That’s it? You haven’t been hanging out with him outside of school or anything?” Shawn must have thought Jesse was the guy Beth had been seeing and Beth felt embarrassed for the fact that he was _so_ wrong. 

“No, we talk in class. That’s it. Whatever you’ve been hearing… I don’t even know,” Beth shrugged. 

“I can vouch for her. She’s been hanging out with me a lot. Definitely no Pinkman in sight,” Haley spoke up. “You seriously think there would be something going on between those two? Please, I would be the first to know.” 

Shawn narrowed his eyes at Haley as she forced a smile in return. He sighed before shaking his head and walking off. He called out to Beth from over his shoulder, “This isn’t finished. We’ll talk later.” 

“Great, now my brother is on my case.” Beth kicked at the floor as she continued walking down the hall toward the cafeteria with Haley. “Crap—do you think Jesse would say anything?” 

“Uh, if you think he would we might want to beat your brother to him. We all have the same lunch.”

\- - -

“If you see Shawn coming, stop him. Distract him. Just do something to make sure he doesn’t see me talking to Jesse,” Beth rambled as they climbed down the stairs as fast as they could. 

“Aye aye, captain.” Haley stood her ground keeping look out for Shawn as Beth searched for Jesse among all the other students. It didn’t take long for her to pinpoint him though because thankfully, she already knew his whereabouts of where he usually sat for lunch since everyone had their own clique and their own spot that they had staked out from day one.

Beth quickly pulled the chair out next to Jesse and sat down before anyone else joined him around his table. This action gained a few onlookers and Beth shot a glare in their direction to make them look away. 

“Uh? Yeah?” Jesse was leaning away from Beth in his chair like she was about to hit him. 

“We need to talk. Make sure we’re on the same page here.” Beth glanced up to make sure the coast was still clear with Haley: No Shawn so far. “You haven’t been talking to anyone about us, have you? Or about anything else?” 

“Whoa, whoa. What are you talking about? I haven’t said shit to anyone. Someone’s saying shit?” Jesse sat back in his chair properly while shooting a questioning look at Beth.

“My brother is under the impression there’s something going on between us. Has he talked to you? Shawn Greene. Brown hair—“

“Nobody has talked to me. Where is he getting the impression something’s going on?” 

“I don’t know. Do you think people in our chemistry class are talking?” 

“Well, the entrance you just made sitting down next to me probably doesn’t help matters,” Jesse stated.

Beth looked back over towards Haley as she noticed she was now walking with Shawn and keeping him busy. “Shit… I gotta go. But if my brother or anyone says anything to you or if anyone asks—“

“I’m not a damn rat, okay? Just go already,” Jesse waved his hands to dismiss her from the table.

Beth moved cautiously, making sure Shawn didn’t look over in her general direction. Once she had walked so far she knew she was in the clear and sighed in relief. Haley must have noticed as well because she finally let Shawn walk away and head back to his own table.

“Well?” Haley asked once they both sat down at their table away from everyone.

“We’re good.”


	12. Chapter 12

Beth was back on schedule after another few days passed by. She struggled to push any thought of Daryl to the back of her mind. She hadn’t received any form of contact from him but she didn’t let that get her down. Maybe he was busy. Either way, she didn’t over think it. She just let things take their natural course and stopped fretting over him for a short while. She had to start really focusing on her schoolwork while she was in class, not him. It was almost the end of the year and finals would be there before she knew it. 

Shawn was absolutely clueless. Furthermore, so was the rest of her family. Maggie might have suspected there being “a boy” that she was seeing but that was it. And she didn’t ever pry. She brought it up that one night and that was the last time she heard anything about it from Maggie. It could also be because Beth hadn’t been venturing out as much either, usually staying home and getting caught up on any homework that had been neglected. 

Beth was headed for chemistry now where she once again found Jesse sitting in his seat before she could even get there. She couldn’t decide if she was truly slacking or if he was improving.

“Hey, what’s up?” Jesse greeted her as she sat down next to him.

“Not a whole lot. Ready for summer.” Beth pushed her things to the side of her desk and set her purse on top of her books. “You seem awfully chipper this morning.” 

“Why? ‘Cause I said _what’s up_?” Jesse smiled but he seemed nervous, his lips slightly twitching. Beth zeroed in on his actions because he wasn’t quite his normal self. 

“Oh no… What’d you do?” Beth groaned. He was hiding something from her but whatever it was, it wasn’t good. She had a bad feeling. It was times like these she was glad Mr. White was usually tardy to class. There was no way her attention was being drawn from Jesse until he started to explain what happened. 

“You wanna just start over and do that again? I really suck at keeping a straight face and if we could do it a second time and you just forgot about all that—“

“ _Jesse_ ,” Beth’s eyes were glued on him. “What did you do?”

“Nothing, alright? It… was just kinda out of my hands.” Jesse buried his face in his hands as he rested his elbows on the table. 

“What was?” Beth kept prying. Jesse was a pro at beating around the bush if she ever saw one.

“Daryl kind of confronted me. He noticed that I’ve been sorta watching him and he got a little paranoid and shit.”

Beth’s eyes grew wide, “What? What did he say?” _Not good, not good!_

“I didn’t say anything though, I swear! I kept it as vague as possible.”

Beth felt like she was about to rip her hair out. “Jesse, what did Daryl say? _He knows_?”

“Well, he asked if I was in high school once we got past the whole paranoid thing. I told him yes. Then he asked if I knew you. So of course I said yes because I do and I didn’t want to lie. I can’t keep up with lies once they start getting out of control, man. They always do.” Jesse rubbed his head.

“And?” Beth urged him to continue. She felt like she had a knot in her throat. 

“He asked how old you were.” Jesse put his hands up as if to surrender, “I didn’t tell him though. That’s the vague part. I just told him that you’re a junior and that I didn’t know.”

Beth buried her face now. Great, it was _so_ over. “You do realize it’s not hard to do the math. People typically graduate when they’re about eighteen.”

Jesse shrugged, “Maybe you flunked.”

Beth let out an exaggerated sigh and buried her face in the crook of her elbow, resting on the table. So now Daryl knew her true age. He _had_ to. Therefore he knew that she lied. Nobody likes liars. None of this was going to go over well. Apparently that was why she never heard from him. 

Beth sat back up straight just as Mr. White entered the room about right on time for his usual schedule, running five minutes behind. She turned to Jesse, “When? When did he talk to you?” 

“Just yesterday. I wouldn’t keep that from you. I know it seemed like I was trying to but…” Jesse shook his head. “No way, man.”

Beth tried to collect her thoughts. Maybe she still had time. If Daryl only confronted Jesse yesterday, maybe she could change his mind before anything was set in stone. It wasn’t exactly her original plan of action. She wanted to give him all the time and space in the world, trying to give him the reins and let him take control by making the first move in calling her. But since that fell through she had to make a change of plans. 

She had to see Daryl.

\- - -

Once school was out for the day, Beth had her mind set on one location and one location only—and that was Teller-Morrow. There was no way she was going to risk going back to that bar and she could only hope that he was working today. If he talked to Jesse yesterday, that meant he was at the bar yesterday, which possibly meant that he didn’t work yesterday. So he had to be at Teller-Morrow today.

No matter how this played out Beth figured she owed Jesse an apology. It wasn’t his fault and really, she was surprised he didn’t say more than he did. Daryl could look pretty intimidating when he wanted to. Actually, she was surprised this all didn’t fall apart sooner. Having Jesse trying to keep an eye on him and Beth trying to follow Daryl around—it all seemed completely ridiculous the more Beth thought about it. She just hoped Daryl didn’t put that much thought into it.

Beth pulled into Teller-Morrow and parked the Sable off to the side away from the vehicles that were being serviced. She left everything in her car as she clutched her keys in her hand and walked toward the garage. She knew she was nervous but she didn’t become fully aware of it until she realized she was slightly shaking with each step she took. 

Daryl was nowhere in sight but she quickly recognized Juice and Half-Sack. Surprisingly, they both waved at her. Apparently they recognized her from that day at the festival. So she forced a smile and waved in return. She was hoping that their friendliness was a good sign because she was going to need all the luck she could get. 

Just as Beth stepped foot into the garage and was about to ask if Daryl was there, she saw the door to the little office open. Daryl exited from the room and shut the door behind him, his eyes immediately landing on her. She must have stuck out like a sore thumb in a place like this, the only female around.

Beth’s heart pounded in her chest. It wasn’t butterflies or a warm, fuzzy feeling. It was just pure dread and anxiety. She couldn’t read his face but knowing what he learned from Jesse was the most unsettling. She was waiting for him to snap, to tell her to get lost. But he didn’t say any of that as he walked over towards her, Beth’s feet feeling like they were planted to the ground, her lips sealed. 

“We need to talk.” Daryl had stopped right in front of her, his stare fixed on the ground by her feet and his voice low. 

Beth forced her head to comply with a nod in agreement. Goosebumps prickled her arms as he walked past her and headed outside, away from everyone. She just barely caught a glimpse of him walking around the side of the building out of view from inside the garage. The knot was back in her throat as she was practically trembling now. Maybe confrontation was a horrible idea. It was only obvious he knew. Jesse wasn’t kidding. Her simple minded brain just didn’t want to believe it. Now she just wasn’t sure what scared her more: losing the progress she made with Daryl or losing him all together.

Beth moved her feet as fast as they would carry her at the moment’s notice, following where she saw Daryl disappear to. She had just made it around the corner when she froze at the sight of him again. He had lit a cigarette and was leaning against the wall waiting for her. She didn’t know what to do. Should she speak up first? But if she did, that would only be a dead giveaway that she had talked to Jesse. But then again, she was here now. She clearly came here to talk to him for a particular reason. No matter how she looked at it, it boiled down to the same thing: she had lied. 

Beth hesitantly took a few more steps forward until only a few feet separated them. His cold blue eyes locked onto hers and she swore her heart stopped.

Daryl took a drag of his cigarette, his eyes still locked on Beth’s before he finally spoke. “This needs to stop. This little cat and mouse charade you got goin’ on? It ain’t workin’.”

“It’s not working because you’re not letting it.” Beth quickly bit her tongue to prevent any more words from flowing out her mouth like word vomit. She just needed to push past everything and focus on what she really wanted. They always say you can do anything you put your mind to and Beth’s mind was on the man in front of her.

“It’s not working because you’re seventeen and I’m thirty-two.”

Beth slightly caved, “I’m sorry, okay? But I could have just as easily have told you that I was a lot older. I didn’t.”

“Wouldn’t a mattered. Still the same circumstance.” Daryl shifted, taking another drag before tossing the cigarette down and putting it out with his boot. Beth was able to catch a glimpse of his hand and noticed that her phone number was long gone. She couldn’t help but wonder if he even kept it.

“What difference does it make? I’m still me. My age shouldn’t define who I am. I don’t care that you’re thirty-two so you shouldn’t care that I’m seventeen,” Beth retorted. 

“It makes a difference when you’re an older guy hanging out with an underage girl with cops already sniffing around in your business. It’s a small town and my dad and brother have already been locked up on numerous occasions. You think my name ain’t already a red flag in the system?” 

“If something like that was going to happen, it would have already happened.” Beth folded her arms in front of her chest. Maybe she hadn’t thought about it from his perspective. He was just trying to protect himself from the law. “I’ll be eighteen really soon. My age shouldn’t matter if you care about me.” 

“I don’t.” Daryl’s face was stern. He didn’t seem to have any problem talking to Beth now.

Beth sifted through her thoughts. Her mind felt like it was an overloaded mess. “What about when we first met? You tried to help me with my car. You weren’t just doing that out of the kindness of your heart then.”

Daryl sighed, “I did it before some other guy could bother you. The guy that tried to pick you up in the bar? That was Ash. Had I not been there, there woulda been no stoppin’ him.” His words sent a chill down Beth’s spine, the sudden realization hitting her of how close she was to becoming a possible rape victim after all. “He’s also the prick that put Merle in jail this last time.” 

“You were just protecting me? Even before we knew each other?” Beth questioned him.

Daryl rubbed his face and nodded, “Yeah.”

Beth let the silence fill the air while she attempted to process what all he had said. The only thing she could register was that he never corrected his original statement that they had to stop seeing each other. “So… what? You’re telling me that this is completely over?”

Daryl shook his head, “It was never a thing.” 

“Then what was all of that before? You had no problem making out with me in your truck.” Beth bit the inside of her mouth. Her hormones were fluctuating all over the place. She started out being nervous, to scared, to now angry. _‘It was never a thing’? Bullshit!_

“I was pissed off and slightly drunk. It’s a bad combination for me just like I’m a bad combination for you. Don’t you get that?” Daryl narrowed his eyes at her, the scowl making its infamous appearance. “Do yourself a favor and stop harassing me. I ain’t interested.” He was using his intimidating look to try and scare her off but Beth could see right through it. 

But even though she could see through it, it didn’t stop the tears that were suddenly threatening to overflow. She’d be damned if she let any tear fall in the presence of Daryl. 

“Yeah, it’s just another damn excuse.” She spit her words at him before she abruptly turned on her heels and headed for her car. If that wasn’t the way she had planned it then she was royally screwed because she wasn’t taking any of her words back. Everything she said, she meant. If Daryl Dixon wanted to play some sick, cruel game then so be it. Because she wasn’t going to cry over him. 

She _refused_ to cry over him.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Daryl's POV!

Daryl flipped his cell phone around in his hand, staring at it as though he were contemplating on calling someone. It was times like these where he actually hated being alone and having nothing to keep his mind busy. After yesterday all he could think about was Beth, and how pathetic was that? There was a slim part of him that wanted to call her and apologize for what he had said. Looking back, it was a good thing he got rid of her number as soon as possible so that he couldn't make that mistake.

Daryl had said all those things to her but he meant them. He had to let his words sink into her. It wasn't going to work out no matter what. No matter how much he liked her— _thought_ he liked her—it wasn't going to happen. He liked the idea of her. She was way too young and way too innocent for him. And she seemed to genuinely care, which was something he was definitely not used to. But she didn't know him. If she actually knew him, she would have surely gone running in the other direction.

Hell, he was even willing to look past the whole "stalking" thing. After having found out that she had been talking to Jesse and Jesse had apparently been playing as her spy, he kind of admired all the effort she put into trying to track him down. And lying about her age?

What had the world come to with a little young blonde girl chasing after him?

No, he stood by what he said. He had to do everything he could to push her away. In all actuality, he was shocked the incident in his truck didn't send her running. It was only obvious she wasn't experienced and the bold move on her half took him by surprise. She was apparently braver than she looked. He felt disgusted with himself after that though because he felt like he had taken advantage of her, even if she had led him on and he had a bit to drink. But she would move on from this and completely forget about him in no time, which is exactly what they both needed at this point. He was just another asshole in her book and that was fine with him. He didn't need her around. If she showed up again after all of that, he'd be surprised.

A buzzing sound suddenly went off, startling Daryl and bringing him back into the real world. He had been standing against the wall of the apartment complex fiddling around with his phone in his hands while lost in some daze before he realized it was his phone going off. He cursed under his breath and glanced down at the screen before rolling his eyes.

_Fucking Merle._

Daryl muted the ringer and slid his phone into his back pocket. He wasn't in the mood to talk to Merle. There weren't many times here lately that he was. It was always the same stupid shit. So Daryl kept his hands occupied and grabbed the cigarette that he had sitting behind his ear and stuck it between his lips. It was probably a good thing Merle called in a way because he snapped Daryl out of his thoughts. He needed that.

Just as Daryl flicked his lighter and successfully lit his cigarette, he noticed a squad car slowing down on the road. It was when that same squad car pulled into the parking lot belonging to the apartment complexes that Daryl shook his head and held back a laugh. So that was what Merle was calling for. He must have already went off and done something stupid to have the cops back on his trail.

Daryl slid his lighter into his other back pocket and took a drag as he watched the two officers emerge from the parked car. Of course to make matters even worse, the two officers just so happened to be Grimes and Walsh.

"Daryl Dixon?" Rick stared right at him like he didn't already know who he was. He and Shane were quickly approaching while Daryl stayed put with his back against the wall.

"Yeah? This have to do with my brother or something? 'Cause he ain't here." Daryl figured he'd keep his cool. There was no point in getting worked up over these two.

"We've received some suspicions that you raped an underage girl and that you've got some crystal on you," Shane spit his words, not bothering to bounce around the topic at hand.

Well, so much for trying to keep his cool.

Daryl scoffed, "Where'd the hell you get those suspicions? I ain't done neither."

"Well, you're gonna have to come with us down to the station regardless until everything can get sorted out," Rick replied.

"Fuck you, I ain't goin' nowhere. Ain't nothin' to sort out."

"You best watch your mouth, Dixon," Shane warned, grabbing onto his belt and adjusting it. He was always the prick of the two, making Rick seem like a halfway decent guy for being a pig.

"Freedom of speech, jackass. I'll call you whatever I damn well please." Daryl took a final drag of his cigarette and discarded it. "You can't arrest me on suspicion."

"No, but we can bring you down to the station and if you give us a reason to keep you there then that's all it'll take." Shane pulled the handcuffs off his belt and took a step forward as Daryl took a step to the side, moving away from the two.

"I told you I didn't do shit." Daryl's eyes were glued to the handcuffs. No way in hell was he going with these two. This was a set up. It had to be. But who would have tipped the police with false information?

"You keep backing up and it'll be considered resisting arrest." Shane grabbed Daryl's left wrist but that was as far as he got before Daryl sent a punch at his face. Rick intercepted though and grabbed Daryl's free wrist before his fist could collide with Shane's face. Daryl struggled to break out of their grasps. It was shortly after that when he felt the cold metal cuff click over the wrist Shane held, Rick and Shane both leading him over to their car.

Shane took over completely now as he grabbed Daryl's other wrist and slammed him down against the hood. He finished cuffing him while Rick patted him down, taking his cell phone, lighter, keys, and cigarettes. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed for you. I cover everything?"

"You wanna search my apartment or truck you best work on gettin' yourselves a warrant." Daryl didn't have anything to hide but if these shitheads wanted to play their little games then he was going to play along.

Shane pulled him back upright and led him to the back of the squad car. "That won't be a problem."

Of course it wouldn't be a problem. Damn pigs.

\- - -

"So you're not going to own up to it, huh?" Shane led Daryl into the station with Rick following along right behind them. Shane didn't stop until they were in front of the cells where Rick took over and unlocked the handcuffs before ushering him into one of the barred cells and shut the door.

"Ain't nothin' to own up to. I told you I didn't do shit." Daryl glared back at them.

"Well, give it some time and we'll have your warrant. I guess you won't mind waiting here now will you?" Shane sneered.

Daryl held his glare until the two left. Once they were out of sight, he sighed and sat down on the bench inside the cell. Well this was certainly a turn of events, and definitely not the way he saw the day going. Maybe he should have just left Beth on her own with her car problems. Had he ignored her then he wouldn't be sitting in a damn jail cell.

After a few minutes, Daryl glanced up to see two new figures approaching. He smirked as he got up and walked over to the bars, "The hell are you two doin' here?"

"Scout here called me. She saw you getting arrested," Jax nodded toward Anna. "We should be asking you the same thing. What's going on?"

"I'm apparently in possession of crank and raped a girl. You tell me," Daryl summed up what Shane had to say. If looks could kill, Jax would have Rick and Shane in their graves. Daryl turned to Anna, "Can't you talk to your dad?" Daryl never thought he'd be thankful for having Anna as a next door neighbor. They had become fairly good friends because of it, and her dad being a cop was a nice bonus. John Ed Turner had become a good friend as well, having their backs when something went down.

"Nah, don't worry about it. I'll get Unser. We'll get you the hell outta here." Jax immediately turned on his heels and stalked off to find Wayne. Good ol' Wayne Unser. Sometimes it was nice having cops on their side rather than just against them. Shane and Rick weren't going to win this.

"I saw Shane cuffing you. So I figured I'd call Jax and get everything sorted out," Anna briefly explained.

"Yeah, thanks Scout." Daryl never did get the explanation from her as to why she liked the nickname 'Scout' but he didn't bother asking either. Ever since he met her she claimed everyone called her that and that was the name she went by.

"Good thing we are literally next door neighbors, huh? Otherwise no one would have known you were here," Anna smiled.

Jax reappeared with Unser not too far behind, the old man shaking his head and Jax grinning.

"I gotta be a cop from time to time here, you know…" Unser muttered as he grabbed the key from off his belt.

Daryl smirked as Unser unlocked the door and let him out. "So where are Grimes and Walsh?"

"I imagine they're still trying their hardest to keep you in here," Unser replied. "And I guess I'll have to go make sure they stay busy so that you three can get outta here."

Jax handed Daryl his things that Rick took from him and Daryl shoved everything back in his pockets. Jax Teller was probably the first and only true friend Daryl ever had. He liked most of the guys at Teller-Morrow but Jax always had his back without question, even if they did have a few scuffles from time to time. It wasn't ever anything serious though.

"Thanks, Unser," Daryl nodded in gratitude.

"Yeah, don't mention it…" Unser partially nodded in return as Jax led the way out, Daryl following with Anna by his side.

\- - -

Anna parked her car a few spots away from Daryl's truck. As soon as she turned the key in the ignition, Daryl had already bolted from the passenger seat, having practically chewed on the side of his thumb the whole way back. He was already at the foot of the stairs by the time Anna got out of her car.

"Whoa, what's the rush?" she called out after him, slightly jogging to keep up.

"Got someone I wanna pay a visit to." Daryl fished his apartment key from his pocket and climbed the stairs to the second floor before walking down the balcony until he reached his door. While he unlocked it he noticed Anna was leaning against her apartment door staring at him. "What?"

"We already busted you out of jail once today. Don't you think that's enough?" Anna joked.

"It's not like that. Won't go that far." Daryl entered his apartment long enough to grab the key to his motorcycle and stepped back out, locking up. Anna was still standing where he left her, her arms crossed.

"Daryl," Anna's voice was full of warning. "You're going after whoever it is you think reported you, aren't you?"

Daryl forced a small smile, "I'll be back later." He shoved his apartment key back into his pocket and gripped the key to his motorcycle in his hand while walking back down the balcony and heading for the stairs.

"You better be, hillbilly! Play nice!" Anna shouted at his back.

\- - -

Daryl may have been a little slow at catching Jesse watching him for however long it went on for, but that didn't mean he wasn't observant. So when Daryl parked his motorcycle outside the bar and noticed the red piece of shit Toyota parked a ways down the street he grinned. Bingo—Jesse was here.

Daryl entered the bar and immediately spotted Jesse hanging around by the wall. He never really suspected the kid to still be in high school hanging around here but apparently nobody else questioned his presence either, and for good reason considering at least half of the guys around there were always looking for a little bit of something. And it didn't take long for Jesse to realize that Daryl was there or that he had his glare locked onto him.

Jesse ducked and meant to run for cover but Daryl caught him by his shirt and slammed his back against the wall. "Hey—whoa, whoa, whoa—" Jesse put his arms up to deflect any incoming blows that he suspected but Daryl held back.

"Tell me why I shouldn't jus' beat the shit outta ya right now," Daryl lowered his voice and readjusted his grip on Jesse's shirt, grabbing him by the collar and keeping him pressed against the wall.

"'Cause I don't know what the hell you're talking about?—You asked me questions and I answered truthfully, I swear." Jesse slightly lowered his arms once he realized Daryl wasn't hitting him.

"You sayin' you had nothin' to do with the cops showing up at my apartment?"

"Why would I get involved with the cops, yo? Hello?" Jesse reached into his pocket and revealed a small plastic baggy of meth and waved it around for emphasis.

Daryl sighed, "Alright, good point…" He released Jesse's shirt and took a step back. "Put that shit away."

"My bad. Just wanted you to back off my case. I don't go to the cops for nothing. I mean, obviously." Jesse stuffed the baggy back into his pocket and sighed in relief. "So are we good here?"

"You been keepin' your distance from Merle?" Daryl narrowed his eyes.

"Yes. I haven't even seen him since like… the festival. I don't talk to him. And if he's getting crank from someone, it's not me, alright?"

Daryl nodded and scratched his chin. He smirked which in turn had Jesse furrowing his brow before he punched him in the face.

Jesse stumbled back against the wall, almost tripping over himself and falling flat on his ass. "What the hell was that for, _bitch_!" He clutched his nose and glared back at Daryl.

"For being a creepy bastard and stalking me. We'll leave it at that." Daryl turned and headed back outside digging in his pocket for his cigarettes in the process. He pulled one out and set it between his lips as he leaned against the wall outside the bar, grabbing his lighter and lighting the end. He pocketed the pack of cigarettes and lighter, taking a long drag before he heard the door to the bar open. He glanced over to see Jesse had slowly followed with a nose bleed.

Jesse put his hands up to show he meant no harm before he leaned against the wall next to Daryl, leaving about a two foot gap between the two. Jesse cleared his throat, "I don't suppose I could bum a cigarette off of you after you punched me in the face?"

Daryl found himself holding back a laugh as he set his cigarette back on his lips and offered Jesse one. Jesse eyed him cautiously before reaching over and taking one from the pack. "Need a lighter?"

"Nah… I'm good." Jesse put the cigarette between his lips and reached into his own back pocket and pulled out a lighter. He got it lit after a couple flicks and stored the lighter back in his pocket, taking a drag. "You think it's funny? Punching me?"

"Don't take it personally," Daryl shrugged. "You got balls, kid."

"Yeah, thanks. I guess." Jesse took another drag and stared down at the cigarette as he exhaled. It was silent for a short while before Jesse spoke up again. "She really does like you, you know…"

"What?" Daryl glanced over at him. He was well aware that Jesse meant Beth but wasn't wanting to go down that road again.

"Nothing, never mind." Jesse shook his head. "Thanks for the uh… cigarette." He wiped the backside of his hand under his nose and glanced back at Daryl, nodding in recognition before taking off down the sidewalk towards his car.

Daryl just shook his head. That kid was a real piece of work. Maybe even reminded him of himself in his teen years in some odd way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anna Turner, aka "Scout", is a character from the video game Survival Instinct, as well as her father who was briefly mentioned. She is nothing more than a friend.


	14. Chapter 14

When Beth stormed away from Daryl and left Teller-Morrow, she was able to bottle up her anger and repress all other emotions. At least it worked long enough for her to drive home and head straight for her room. She was hoping to make it home with no questions asked and no one around to see her come inside. Maggie was in the kitchen at the time and she had seen Beth march straight for the stairs and straight for her room, out of sight. Beth knew Maggie wasn't one to necessarily pry so she hoped she wouldn't follow.

Beth made it to her room and shut her door, reminding herself not to slam it, and threw her purse on the floor carelessly. Tears were stinging at her eyes but she wasn't sure if it was because of Daryl's words or because she had worked herself so angry that she needed to let something out. It was probably a little bit of both. How could Daryl say that there was nothing? He didn't care? But hadn't he contradicted himself by saying he was trying to protect her—even before he knew her?

Beth felt like kicking something, throwing something against a wall, _breaking_ something. When had her life turned into a soap opera? She was beginning to feel like a completely different person. Since when did she find men almost twice her age attractive and try pursuing them, making out with them? Not only that but she was talking to a guy she would _never_ talk to in a million years because he was involved with drugs. And she had even contemplated on going _that_ far with Daryl just to try and break through to him? And for what? For him to like her back? Maybe Maggie had a point with the Lifetime movie idea. It was beginning to feel that way.

Maybe the little old sweet Beth Greene was turning into someone else.

"Beth?" Maggie's voice sounded from the other side of the bedroom door out in the hall. There was a light knock that followed.

Beth wiped her eyes and took a deep breath, clearing her throat. "Yeah?" All she had to do was keep calm and not show any emotion. She just had to be herself and assure Maggie that she was okay.

Maggie cautiously opened the door and stuck her head in with a small smile before fully entering and closing the door behind her. "Everything okay?"

"Fine," Beth forced a smile. Why was it that Maggie could always seem to sense something was off? "Just a stressful day at school. Where's mom and dad?"

Maggie crossed her arms. "Dad's outside with Otis. Mom went into town with Patricia to get a few things."

"Otis and Patricia came by?" Maybe Beth shouldn't have asked that aloud.

"Yeah, Otis' truck is out front. Figured you would have seen it coming in." Maggie narrowed her eyes at Beth and walked over to her bed, taking a seat. "What kind of stress are we talking about because I haven't seen you like this in a long time."

"It's nothing. It's all sorted out. Just finals and stuff. You know how I get with the last couple weeks of school." Beth's smile faltered the more Maggie planted her feet within her room. But Maggie held her stare and Beth could slowly feel herself slipping. She trusted Maggie. Maggie could keep things confidential. And Beth missed confiding in her when she was with Jimmy, before Maggie went off to college.

So Beth finally broke. Her lip quivered as she tried to hold back from crying but the tears didn't stop. She quickly covered her face and stifled a sob before she felt Maggie's hands on her shoulders. Maggie pulled Beth's hands down and led her over to her bed as they sat side by side without a word while Beth cried helplessly to get it all out of her system. Maggie wrapped an arm around her as Beth rested her head against her shoulder. Beth waited until she settled down enough before trying to speak.

"It's just a stupid guy and I'm done trying." Beth wiped her face.

"All of this is over a guy? What happened? Did he hurt you? I mean…"

Beth shook her head, "Not physically… He's just an asshole."

Maggie smiled faintly. "Never thought I'd live to see the day you'd be cussing in front of me."

Beth forced a laugh and smiled in return. She might be turning out to be someone different that who she was a couple months ago but that didn't mean it was a bad thing. She was growing up and she was learning. She was becoming stronger.

"Don't let this get to you, okay? There are plenty of fish in the sea. You don't need to waste your time on a guy who can't appreciate you for who you are. You need a guy that deserves you. So don't beat yourself up over this." Maggie rubbed Beth's back in a comforting manner.

"No guy I date is going to be good enough for you." Beth recalled Maggie's words when she was dating Jimmy. It brought a smile to her face. Maggie had told her that no guy was ever going to be good enough for her for Beth because she was the little sister.

"Yup. I stand by what I said." Maggie stood up and pulled Beth to her feet and into a hug. "Keep your chin up because a guy is never worth your tears."

\- - -

Beth felt a little better after her talk with Maggie. She couldn't help but think of how differently it would have gone had Beth told her the entire truth. Maggie would have flipped out on her and then she would have recruited Shawn and found Daryl and… things would not have ended well to say the least.

But today marked a new day. She had to listen to Maggie and keep her chin up. She was done messing around with Daryl and trying to chase after him. If he wanted to be that way, then fine. Beth Greene had bigger and better things ahead of her. Even if she wasn't quite sure what that was yet. She just figured she'd keep what happened with Daryl to herself and she'd tell Haley and Jesse that it was off, simple as that. She had to move on.

Beth found Jesse sitting in his usual spot when she arrived to chemistry. She smiled just at the sight of him and the fact that he had his hood up partially covering his face. She made her way over and set everything down on the desk before taking a seat. "Are you trying to hide from someone?" Beth teased, pulling his hood down from the back. Jesse made a frantic grab for the hoodie material but quickly gave up as Beth had already pulled it down. She almost gasped once she realized why he had it up in the first place. "Jesse—"

Jesse shushed her. "Don't make a big deal out of it, alright?"

" _But you have a black eye_ ," Beth whispered harshly. "What happened?"

"It was just a misunderstanding," Jesse started. "This… guy mistook me for someone else and he punched me. That's all it was."

"Some guy mistook you for someone else? How is that even a reasonable excuse?"

"I don't know, the dude had a bit to drink and he was confused. It's not a big deal, really. Don't worry about it."

"You should call the cops or something. So-called 'accident' or not, that guy gave you a black eye. He obviously could have done worse."

"No, no cops," Jesse waved his hands. "The guy could have done worse, yeah, but he didn't and let's leave it at that. Please."

Beth stared back at him before slowly nodding. He looked worse for wear and she felt bad for him. She didn't think he was lying because why would he lie about getting punched? Unless it had something to do with drugs. Maybe that was it. No, Jesse wasn't a liar…

Mr. White entered the classroom and got things started shortly after that. The class drug on as they were now reviewing over everything from the beginning of the semester until the present time. Mr. White wanted to make sure everyone understood everything and he didn't want to cover too much more before finals would rear their ugly heads. Probably one of the reasons Beth found him to be one of her favorite teachers too.

The bell rang to dismiss class and Beth immediately jumped to her feet and grabbed her things. She stopped when she heard Jesse say her name, glancing over at him.

"Just want to say thanks… for helping me with chemistry and shit. It's been nice. And uh, if you ever want to talk or anything. Ya know…" Jesse extended his hand with a folded up scratch piece of paper between his fingers.

Beth took it and unfolded it to reveal a ten digit number: Jesse's phone number. She smiled back at him before she slid the piece of paper into her pocket. "You're talking like we're never going to see each other again."

Jesse shrugged, "Just wanted to get it out of my system. I appreciate you helping me. Makes me feel smarter." He forced a smile and threw his hood back up before ducking his head down and walking out of the room.

Beth's smile slowly faded as she followed him out of the classroom with a few other classmates in between. There was more to Jesse than just "drugs". He was actually a pretty decent guy. It kind of made Beth realize that she couldn't just judge people based off of their appearance.

Maybe the change was good after all.

\- - -

School went remotely well but Beth was thankful when the final bell rang and they were dismissed. She caught up with Haley and they walked out to the parking lot together. After Beth told Haley that she was done chasing after Daryl, she had never seen Haley look so relieved.

"I'm glad it's over, no offense. I was afraid things would get crazy out of hand and you'd get hurt." Haley glanced over at Beth. "You are okay, right?"

Beth forced a smile, "Yeah, I'm fine. I thought about what you said and I agreed that things would be better to stop now before I got too far ahead of myself." She glanced down at her feet for the next few steps she took, giving her mind something to focus on. She wasn't lying to Haley, she just wasn't telling her everything that happened. She was fine, she didn't need Daryl. She certainly didn't need to think about him anymore. He won his little game and she was keeping her distance.

Beth refocused her attention back towards the parking lot and sighed. She was going to have to find a way to get Daryl off of her mind. But then she spotted Jesse among the sea of classmates eagerly flooding the student parking lot to leave. She gave it a little thought before she turned to Haley, "How about we go out and get some ice cream or something? I just want to do something."

"Sure, I'm always up for ice cream. Or… whatever 'something' can substitute for," Haley smiled.

"And what about asking someone else if he wanted to come with?"

"Someone else? 'He' who?" Haley furrowed her brow staring back at Beth, confused. "I thought you said—"

"Not _him_ ," Beth refused to say his name. "Jesse."

"Jesse _Pinkman_? You want us to hang out with Jesse Pinkman?"

"Yeah. He's cool. And he looks lonely." Beth chewed on her lip as she watched Jesse walking in front of them quite a ways down the sidewalk out of hearing range.

"Because he cooks and sells meth? Or because he came to school with a shiner today? Believe me, he can't be too lonely in the drug world."

Beth frowned, "You know, I would have agreed with you a couple or so months ago but that was before I got to kind of know him. He's a nice guy, Haley. And I disagree with your statement now."

Haley looked as though she were in deep thought before shrugging, "Whatever. As long as he can't get us in trouble with the law, sure."

"You mean it or are you going to harass him?" Beth raised an eyebrow.

"I mean it. Look…" Haley cleared her throat, "Pinkman! Hold up!"

Beth smiled at Haley's willingness to hang out with him. Jesse heard her yell his name and stopped and turned around, almost immediately locking eyes with Haley. He started walking back towards them as the three met somewhere in the middle of the gap between them.

"What's up?" Jesse glanced nervously between the two.

"You have any plans?" Haley asked him, taking over for Beth to prove she meant it. Jesse looked confused and slowly shook his head before Haley continued, "Good because you're coming with us."

"What? Why? Where are we going?" Jesse questioned, looking to Beth for an explanation.

"Ice cream?" Beth smiled at him. She wanted to hang out with him and become actual friends. It didn't hurt to sway Haley's opinion of him either. Beth never did get the chance to really apologize to Jesse yet and this was one way she could. After having Jesse help her find Daryl and her helping him with chemistry, it only made sense to start talking outside of school about anything other than the two things they apparently had in common: Daryl and chemistry. Besides, it never hurt to have too many friends.


	15. Chapter 15

Everything was going surprisingly well to Beth's surprise. Sure she still couldn't get Daryl out of her mind but after hanging out with Haley and Jesse, she realized she should have gone out with them sooner. They both got along with one another and it was nice to just hang out and goof around.

It was probably a good thing she got the chance to do that when she did too, because when she got home from school the next day, Shawn found her in her room and shut the door behind him without a single word. And he didn't look pleased.

"Shawn?" Beth was sitting on her bed when he had come in. She tried to think of what in the world Shawn could possibly tell her now. Had he seen her leave school yesterday with Haley and Jesse? Was that the reason he seemed so agitated?

"You haven't been hanging out with anyone in our school. You've been hanging out with an older guy," Shawn started. He crossed his arms and leaned against the door.

Beth fidgeted. Did Shawn figure it out? Or was he just trying to get her to come clean? Either way, she figured she didn't have anything to lose. She wasn't talking to Daryl anymore. "So? I'm not hurting anyone. I'm not a baby, I can take care of myself."

"You want to be babied? Stop hanging out with this guy or I'll tell dad."

Beth pushed herself up off her bed and crossed her arms now. "Why are you making this such a big deal?"

"Because of all people I don't want my little sister hanging around the Dixons!"

"What—how did you know…?" Beth's face fell. There was no way he could have figured that out on his own. He hadn't been following her. The only time she was aware of Shawn even coming face to face with Daryl was the day she met him outside that bar when the Sable broke down.

"I have my sources. And Hershel knows their dad Will. It's bad, okay? Don't hang out with him." Shawn lowered his voice but it did nothing to ease anyone's nerves.

"You're comparing him to his dad and brother. He's nothing like them." Beth was standing up for Daryl without even realizing it. Hadn't she declared him to be an asshole and that she was done trying with him?

…Wasn't she?

"Oh, and I suppose you know that?"

"Yes, I do!" Beth raised her voice. "First you tell me there's something going on between me and Jesse when there's not, and you told me to stop talking to him. Now you're telling me I need to stay away from Daryl. So which one is it?"

Before Shawn could provide her with an answer, the bedroom door opened once again. Shawn moved to allow Hershel and Annette to enter though they stayed close to the doorway. "What on earth is going on up here?"

Beth shot a glare toward Shawn. He couldn't tell their parents. If he did, Beth would be screwed— _beyond_ screwed. Maybe she should have just told Maggie the complete truth to begin with and she could have avoided this whole mess. Maggie was at least a little more levelheaded than Shawn.

Shawn shook his head. "She's been hanging out with the Dixons."

" _Dixon_ , singular!" Beth stomped her foot as she took a step forward. "And I'm not hanging out with him. I was but I'm not anymore."

Hershel nodded. Of the three of them, he looked the most settled and Beth was relieved when he ended up pushing Shawn and Annette out of the room and shut the door behind them. She knew her dad was going to give her some sort of lecture but she preferred it from him over her mom or brother.

"Sit down," Hershel motioned for her bed, the place that had become her lecture spot as of lately. So she listened and sat down as he took a seat beside her. He provided her with a small smile of the sorts before continuing, "I'm disappointed to learn this news from an argument and that you didn't think to tell anyone first of all. What's been going on?"

"I know it's just…" Beth sighed. "That day the Sable broke down? Daryl was there and he tried to help me out. I went after him though not the other way around. He didn't do anything wrong." Well, besides trying to rip her heart out by what he had said the last time she saw him.

"Nothing at all?" Hershel looked back at her.

Beth only shook her head, "Shawn said you know their dad. The Dixons? How?"

Hershel chuckled and patted Beth's knee. "Years ago, yes. Will and I were drinking buddies believe it or not. It was about twenty years ago now, before Maggie was even born. We just crossed paths one day at Jake's Bar. He had lost his wife to a house fire. A lot of bad things happened at that bar back in the day and I imagine things haven't changed a whole lot. After Maggie was born, I tried to clean myself up and stop drinking. It was around that time that Josephine passed away. I stayed away from that bar in order to raise Maggie and then I met your mother. I suppose you can figure the rest out from there."

Beth forced a smile. She didn't see any of that coming. Of course she had never known Josephine but she knew her dad had been married previously. And she knew a little bit about her dad having been a heavy drinker at one point in his life. But her dad drinking with Daryl's dad twenty years ago? It didn't seem real.

Beth allowed a moment of silence before jumping right into asking about the Dixons again. "Did you ever meet Daryl or Merle?" Twenty years ago would have made Daryl about twelve and Beth couldn't help but grin at the mental picture.

"Will had mentioned he had two boys but I never really met them. Merle was enrolled in the military around that time so he wasn't around. I believe Daryl was about ten years old. I had seen him a time or two maybe but that was it. I guess Will had a half-brother that he usually left Daryl with after his wife passed."

Beth nodded. That explained why Daryl never mentioned his mom then. She recalled him saying that he wasn't that close to his family and the half-brother that her dad had mentioned must be the half-uncle that Daryl had talked briefly about at TM the day he fixed her tire. But Beth was still having a hard time getting passed the idea of her dad knowing Daryl's dad.

"The Dixons are a different bunch. I can't say I know much about Daryl in particular but I know Will and Merle were in trouble with the law a lot." Hershel paused and clapped his hand back over Beth's knee again, "The least I can do is ask you to stop hanging around with any of them. They may not be bad people but they do bad things. I don't want to see my daughter getting mixed up in any of that."

"Okay, daddy." Beth forced a smile. That was far from how she expected his lecture to go. He didn't want her being around any of the Dixons but Beth only had her mind on one. And truth be told, his lecture only made Beth want to start seeing Daryl again. She felt like maybe she had a wrong read on him now. Maybe he was purposely trying to push her away or maybe he was testing her. It couldn't hurt to possibly see him again, right?

\- - -

Daryl wasn't sure how to react to Beth's disappearance now that it had been a few days since he'd seen her last. She always seemed to just pop up out of nowhere with some ridiculously cute smile plastered on her face. Daryl never had a girl trying that hard to run into him and follow him around—to just talk to him. He figured no one wanted anything to do with him either because of some reputation he had around these parts or just his overall look, scowl included. People typically didn't mess with him.

But he did what needed to be done and he pushed her away. Apparently he had done so right on time too, before the cops could actually try to pin something against him and get away with it. He still couldn't figure out who had tipped the cops with false information. Being accused of rape and possession of meth though? He wouldn't be surprised if Beth herself hadn't been the one to call on him. If that was her way of lashing out and getting back at him then damn…

Daryl shook his head to clear his thoughts and pulled the rag from his back pocket to wipe his hands off. He turned to Jax who was still intent on fixing the vehicle in front of them. "You talk to Tara yet?"

"Yeah…" Jax wiped his hands on his jeans and sighed. "Didn't make a whole lot of progress. She's still thinking about going back to Chicago for work. It's complicated."

Daryl scoffed, "When isn't it?" Jax glanced over at him and laughed. Jax had dated Tara in high school and they broke up so she could go to college and pursue her career in being a doctor. Now years later she returned and things were trying to repeat themselves.

"Aye! Double D!" Chibs walked past the two, punching Daryl in the shoulder. He grinned at Jax in passing and just kept going. Daryl just shook his head as Jax and Opie tried to hold back a laugh, being the only other two within ear shot.

"You probably should have just given him a fake last name. Or never told him it at all. You'll never live that down," Opie put in his two cents and gave Daryl a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.

"I was hopin' he'd eventually get tired of it," Daryl admitted.

The roar of a motorcycle cut the conversation short as the three stopped what they were doing and looked out at the entrance to Teller-Morrow. Everyone was already accounted for that needed to be but it turned out that it wasn't anyone from TM. In fact, it was Merle on that damn Bonneville Triumph. And to make matters even worse, Clay wasn't far from where Merle had come to a stop and was already making his way over towards him.

"Shit…" Jax was the first to take off and intervene before Clay could get to Merle. Tig and Daryl followed seeing as Merle was obviously there for Daryl and Tig was only going to back Clay up.

"What the hell do you think you're doing here?" Clay started in, every step leading him closer to Merle as he got off the Triumph.

"Mm, still got a temper 'bout ya. Hard ta believe you's still runnin' this place." Merle crossed his arms.

Clay and Merle were practically nose to nose by the time Jax, Tig, and Daryl joined them. Tig took Clay's side while Jax stepped between the two.

"Just go back inside. Merle's leaving," Daryl locked his glare onto his older brother as he spoke. Merle grinned back at him as Jax managed to convince Clay and Tig to back off. It was times like these when Tig could really get under Daryl's skin. The man couldn't be any further up Clay's ass if he wanted to be.

Once the others were visibly back inside TM, Daryl turned back to Merle. "What the hell _are_ you doin' here?"

"Other than havin' a nice lil' reunion ya mean?" Merle chuckled, "You're hard to get a hold of. You workin' some sort of business on the side?"

"It ever occur to you that I have nothin' to say to you?" Daryl mirrored Merle's stance and crossed his arms in front of his chest, ignoring any comment coming from his mouth.

"C'mon, Darleen. Don't go gettin' yer panties in a bunch. Hell, you're already worked up and I ain't even done nothin' yet." Merle smirked, "How're things between you and that lil' blonde thing?"

"I wouldn't know. Ain't talkin' to her."

"Good."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Daryl narrowed his eyes.

"It means I don't see nothin' good comin' outta that. S'why I did what I did. It worked, huh?" Merle moved his hands to his hips with a grin still on his face.

"What the hell are you talkin' about? You're the one who called the cops?" Daryl dropped his arms back down at his sides. Even though Merle was his damn brother he was hard to read when he always wore the same look.

"Had a buddy of mine whose name shall remain confidential. Know how yer temper can get."

Daryl grit his teeth and shoved Merle, "Are you fuckin' stupid? I could have been arrested for shit I didn't even do!"

"No, I was tryin'a protect ya from some other bitch gettin' into yer head. S'not good for ya."

"Well, you're not helpin'." It was taking everything Daryl had to keep his cool. All this time _Merle_ had been the one to call the fucking cops?

"Yeah? And since I'm here and got ya handy, what about that Jake kid? You threaten him or something? 'Cause he's got a real nice shiner and been avoidin' me like the plague."

"Jesse," Daryl corrected him. "And no, I told him to stay away from you. Didn't threaten." Shit, he had given Jesse a black eye? _Oops_ …

"Same damn difference, ain't it?" Merle spit off to the side and wiped his mouth with the backside of his hand.

"You said you would get clean. Don't start this shit again."

Merle pursed his lips as if he were trying to register Daryl's words before nodding. He grinned one last time as he got back onto the Triumph. "Tell yer posse if was nice seein' 'em again." He started the bike back up and took off while Daryl shook his head and retreated back to the garage.

"Hey, everything okay?" Jax was the first to ask before Daryl even set foot back in the garage.

"It was Merle who called the damn cops," Daryl muttered as he passed by Jax. So if Merle would have kept his nose out of his business, there wouldn't have been a problem with the cops. Maybe he could have worked things out with Beth and just stayed friends with her or something at least. Shit… Now there was no way in hell Shane and Rick were going to just leave him alone on those suspicions. "Un- _fucking_ -believable…"


	16. Chapter 16

There was one flaw in Beth's plan of wanting to see Daryl again: Annette confiscated her cell phone and driving privileges until things settled. While her dad was a lot calmer than Beth could have imagined, her mom took action. Beth hadn't seen her dad explode in a rage very often but when he did, it was certainly enough to make Beth want to run and hide. It was like the more calm nature of a person, the more threatening they could seem once they were set off. Maybe Beth got that trait from her dad.

Beth refrained from explaining everything to Haley until she had more time to talk to her. So when she got to chemistry, she threw her books down a little harder than she meant to and let out a frustrated sigh. At least she had Jesse to talk to for the time being.

"Someone's pissed," Jesse pointed out. He looked Beth over, "What's going on?"

"Sorry. It's just my brother found out that I had been talking to Daryl and he kind of blew up. My parents found out after that and now I don't have my cell or my car." Beth briefly explained her circumstances before glancing over at Jesse. She noticed he was twiddling his thumbs in his lap.

"That may be my fault." Jesse rubbed the back of his neck.

"How would it be your fault?" Beth furrowed her brow, staring at him. " _You_ told Shawn?"

"He asked me what I knew. Said he figured you were talking to a guy but he didn't have a clue. I told him you had been talking to Daryl but I told him that was over."

"I thought I told you _not_ to talk to my brother," Beth reminded him.

"Yeah, but I didn't think it was that big of a deal. I told him that it was over so I didn't think he'd necessarily freak out, ya know?"

Beth buried her face in her hands. So when Shawn had said he had his "sources", he meant Jesse. Shawn couldn't keep his nose out of her business. And now it was technically Jesse's fault that she was phone- and carless.

"Sorry…" Jesse mumbled.

"It's okay." Beth unburied her face. She couldn't be mad at Jesse. He had a point. He probably thought telling Shawn would put him at ease and stop trying to go after Beth. After all, Beth thought she was done with Daryl too. But the truth was she was hoping to see him later. And hoping that Haley would maybe help her with that.

"You sure? 'Cause now I feel bad."

"I'm positive. Don't worry about it," Beth smiled at him.

\- - -

"Okay, so what's going on?" Haley questioned Beth as they sat down for lunch in the cafeteria. There really wasn't any point in trying to be discreet anymore. Beth was almost certain most of the school probably knew by now with the way everyone gossiped mercilessly.

"Shawn talked to Jesse, Jesse spilled, and now my parents know. My mom took my phone and car."

"But I thought you were done with Daryl? Why should they care?" Haley raised an eyebrow. "You _are_ done messing around with him, right?"

Beth refocused her attention on her lunch and poked at it with her fork. "I may have had a sudden interest to see him again?"

Haley smacked her palm against her forehead which in turn reminded Beth of those dumb V8 commercials ("Could have had a V8!"). "You're kidding! I thought we talked about this?"

"We did but it's hard to explain. I just want to see him again. At least one more time to see how things go. Which I have to ask you a favor." Beth forced an innocent smile, "Can you drop me off at Teller-Morrow after school?"

Haley slumped in her chair and gave Beth an exasperated look. "And what if he has a girlfriend now? What if you find him with another girl? What if he doesn't work there anymore? What are you going to do?"

Beth repressed a sigh and shook her head. "Daryl hasn't gone anywhere. And you're acting like it's been months since I last saw him."

"I'm trying to run through different scenarios and make you back out. Remember he did upset you. Things will only be worse if you keep pushing."

"Things will be fine."

\- - -

Before she knew it, Haley was driving her down the road to Teller-Morrow. Beth was happy that Haley gave in but she was hoping Haley was wrong about all of the suspicions she had listed. Daryl was surely still the same Daryl. Beth's eyes caught a glimpse of a police vehicle parked a little ways down the street before Haley pulled into TM but Beth didn't give it a whole lot of thought.

Haley put her car in park and turned to face Beth, pointing a finger. "I'm not a part of this. If your parents call me, I have to tell them what I know. And what I know is that I dropped you off here. That's it."

Beth smiled and leaned over to throw her arms around her. "Thank you so much, Haley. I owe you."

"Yeah, you do." Haley smiled in return. "Have fun."

Beth exited her car and gave her a small wave as Haley drove away. Maybe this was perfect. Beth couldn't just leave now. She didn't have any way _to_ leave. So Daryl would have to talk to her.

Beth took a deep breath as she stared over at the garage then let her eyes scan over the row of motorcycles. When she spotted Daryl's truck, her smile widened. She started for the garage but when she was almost there, she was stopped by Jax. She quickly searched his face only to find that he didn't look too happy staring back at her.

"You need something?" Jax began as he stopped in front of Beth. "We service cars here. Seeing as you don't have a car, I think you should turn right back around and leave."

Beth was so thrown off by Jax's words that she didn't even notice that Daryl was walking out to them. Daryl patted Jax on the shoulder and nodded his head back toward the garage. Jax seemed hesitant but he took Daryl's advice and headed back. That's when Beth realized Daryl wore the same expression as Jax and it worried her that something happened.

"Care to explain?" Daryl's tone was a little harsh as he stared down at her through narrowed eyes.

"Explain what? You told me to leave you alone and I did. But I needed to talk to you. My parents… took my phone and car away. This was the only way I could see you. What happened?"

"Cops tried to arrest me. They detained me, said I'm suspected for rape and possession of meth."

Beth's jaw practically dropped, "I didn't say anything like that to anyone! Why would I?"

Daryl shook his head. "I thought that maybe it was you to begin with. But my brother came forward and turns out he was the one to make the call."

Beth found herself at a loss for words. Was that the reason why there was a cop car sitting down the road? His own brother made up some lies and reported it to the police? What in the world was going on?

"Is… it okay if I stay here? I was hoping to get the chance to talk to you." Beth slightly wrapped her arms around herself though she was far from cold.

"You don't have a vehicle so it doesn't look like either of us have much of a choice." Daryl crossed his arms. Before Beth could say anything, he smiled faintly and continued, "I don't get out of here for another couple hours so it'll be a while."

Beth shrugged. "That's fine. I can wait." She was already eyeing his truck figuring she'd just sit there and wait if all else failed. She didn't want to just start walking around and sticking her nose into everyone's business. Well, part of her did but she wasn't going to.

"Uh, I guess make yourself at home." Daryl nodded his head over towards a different building, "You can check out the clubhouse if you want. Might be a little more comfortable than my truck." He apparently noticed Beth's stare.

"Okay," Beth nodded. Daryl gave her one last look before heading back to the garage and leaving her standing out in the middle of the lot. She felt out of her league and way too nervous to go into the so-called "clubhouse" so she stuck with her original idea. She walked over to Daryl's truck and pulled the tailgate down with a rather loud squeak, making sure to keep her grip and not let go so it didn't just fall with gravity. She bit her lip and jumped up onto the tailgate, allowing her legs to swing carelessly beneath her. She wasn't so sure about sitting there for a couple hours but it would work for now.

Beth glanced around at her surroundings as this was the first time she had the chance to really take everything in. Teller-Morrow itself consisted of three large garage stalls and a small attached building that was the office. Then the other building detached from all of that and on the opposite side of the lot was what Daryl had called the clubhouse. And strangely enough, there was a children's playground surrounded by a tall chain link fence with two swings and a slide. It seemed a little out of place to Beth.

There was a sudden transfer of weight on the tailgate and Beth slightly jumped, her head whipping back to see who had sat next to her. She found herself staring back at Jax as he forced a weak smile.

"Hey, I just wanted to apologize for how I acted earlier. I'm just trying to be a good friend to Daryl. I don't know if he told you but he's in a lot of shit right now with the cops over stuff he didn't even do."

Beth felt relieved once she knew he wasn't about to tell her to get lost again. "Yeah, he explained it a little."

"Well, that being said… I don't want anything to happen that could technically hurt him in the long run." Jax paused, his thumb drumming on the tailgate. "So if you're serious about all of this, then go for it. If not, you need to leave."

Beth only stared at him for a minute before she could find the right words to say. Of course she wasn't so sure about what was to come of their relationship but she wasn't necessarily planning on playing him or anything. Beth nodded, "I understand. I don't plan on leaving."

Jax grinned now, shaking his head. "I know you have to realize how stubborn this guy is and yet you're still set on him. You've got to be one determined chick. He needs that."

"Well, I'm glad I'm here." Beth watched as Jax smiled, hopping down off the tailgate and walking back towards the garage. This was something Beth could get used to: hanging around an auto shop with all these guys and Daryl. It was like a little piece of every teenage girl's dream.

Maybe things were meant to work out this way. She first met Daryl then she started talking to Jesse. She became friends with both of them—for the most part. And she met some of the guys of TM. Shawn ratted her out but nonetheless, here she was on the tailgate of Daryl's truck.

It was probably a half hour in total since Beth had taken a seat where she was. But time seemed to pass by fairly quick as she let her mind wander and she watched different people come and go. Mostly just customers. It was uncanny how many people needed something done to their vehicle.

A black Cadillac Escalade pulled in shortly after that and parked. Beth watched as an older woman exited the large SUV with sunglasses and a rather big black purse hanging from her shoulder. Her hair was long and dark with some blonde highlights throughout as the curiosity bit at her as to who the woman could be.

And apparently that same woman was curious as to who Beth was too because she was beginning to walk over towards her causing Beth to fidget slightly.

"I take it you're here for Daryl." The woman stopped just in front of Beth seeming to look her up and down as if she were trying to determine if she was worthy or not. Maybe that wasn't the case but it was what Beth felt. The dark haired woman removed her sunglasses and tucked them into the collar of her shirt, allowing them to hang there as she pushed her bangs over and quirked her lips to the side. "You got a name?"

"It's Beth." Beth wasn't sure how to read this woman. She seemed like she was someone she would typically avoid, someone who could definitely stir shit up and hold her ground.

"Gemma," the woman extended a hand as Beth shook it. Gemma gave Beth another once over before sighing. "Come on inside. It's a lot nicer in the air than sitting out here on hot metal." She had already turned to start walking towards the clubhouse and Beth wasn't sure she registered her words correctly. Except Gemma turned around after a few paces and placed her hands on her hips, "You deaf or what?"

Beth slid down off the tailgate and followed after the woman, glancing back toward the garage one last time. It was obvious this woman had something to do with this place but Beth was still clueless just exactly who she was.

Gemma led the way inside and Beth smiled once everything came into view. There were tables and chairs spread throughout, a bar, what appeared to be a meeting room of the sort behind two double doors, and a small kitchen just by what she could catch in one good glance.

"Have a seat. He'll get you a drink." Gemma nodded her head at the man behind the bar as she set her purse down and placed her sunglasses next to it.

Beth looked at the man as he beamed back at her and waved rather enthusiastically. Beth's eyes widen in shock as she noticed he had six prosthetic fingers. She cringed, not meaning to be rude but she couldn't help herself. "What happened to your fingers?"

"He had a little problem. Bought him those on eBay. Couldn't handle looking at those freaky little nubs anymore," Gemma explained. "Ain't that right, Chucky?"

Chucky's face fell slightly before returning to a smile and nodding, "I accept that." He reached down below the bar to retrieve what Beth assumed was alcohol of some sort, Gemma's words hitting her.

"I can't drink. I'm not—"

"Honey, it's only going on five o'clock. It's still a little too early for that." Gemma dug around in her purse momentarily before Chucky set a can of Coca Cola down.

"Coke or Pepsi?" Chucky was looking over at Beth now, his smile slightly twitching. He seemed way too happy and Beth wasn't sure whether it should make her feel a little uneasy or if his happiness was just contagious.

"Coke's fine," Beth smiled in return as Chucky nodded at her response and set another can down in front of her.

"Good girl. Can't trust anyone who prefers Pepsi to Coke." Beth glanced back over at Gemma just as she was popping the top of her soda. Gemma smiled and took a sip before setting the can back down. "So what's your story? You his old lady or something?"

"I'm sorry, what?" Beth furrowed her brow. Old lady? She wasn't old, she was half Daryl's age.

"Oh, you really are new around here. Thought you would have already gotten the talk. Old lady just kind of means you belong to him, that you're his."

"Well, to be honest I was hoping for that eventually… But we're just kind of talking right now." Beth took a sip of her soda to cover her face from any embarrassment. "Whose… old lady are you?"

Gemma laughed, "You're cute, kid. But I'm Clay's. I'm assuming you've met Jax since you're with Daryl. Jax is my son."

Beth was a little shocked but at the same time, she kind of saw it coming. Gemma looked tough and it really only made since that she was tied in with these guys, being the wife of the guy who owned the place and her son being what Beth could only guess, Daryl's best friend.

After meeting Gemma, time only seemed to fly that much faster. Beth glanced up at the clock above the bar to see that it was about six o'clock when some of the guys from TM started to file in, Clay being one of them. She could hear the roar of a few motorcycles start up and take off, and Beth wondered if she should head back outside now.

Once everyone else seemed to settle in, Beth slipped back out the door and started walking back towards Daryl's truck. She saw Daryl and Jax talking just outside the office as she hopped back up on the tailgate. She couldn't help but wonder what they were talking about but they split seconds after, both of them heading in Beth's general direction. Jax winked as he passed by causing Beth to grin uncontrollably as he headed over to the clubhouse. She met Daryl's eyes as he came to a stop and hopped up on the tailgate beside her.

"So you wanna talk, huh?" Daryl raised an eyebrow.

"If you don't mind, yes."


	17. Chapter 17

Daryl leaned back into the truck bed and lay down, propping his hands behind his head. Beth smiled down at him as she followed his lead, lying down next to him. She made sure to keep the distance that was already there the same. She didn’t want to try making a move on him anymore. She mentally told herself to take things slow and work her way up. She had to learn to talk to him first. Besides, if he was having troubles with the cops, the last thing she needed was to make things worse for him.

“So how was work?” Beth started in as she stared up at the sky. Both of their legs still hung over the end of the tailgate and she felt Daryl’s leg lightly kick her. She turned her head to look over at him and caught him staring back, the look on his face somewhere between confused and trying to hold back a smile. 

“You seriously came here and waited two hours just to ask me how my day at work was?” Daryl turned back to looking up at the sky.

“Yeah, why not?” Beth scrunched her face trying to read his but since he broke eye contact, she lost all hope at getting anything. So she too turned back to looking up at the sky.

“I’d just think you’d have somethin’ better to do than sit around here s’all.” 

“Nah, high school’s overrated,” Beth joked.

“I hear ya.” Daryl chewed on the side of his thumb for a brief moment before he continued, “So how was the wait? I see you must have checked out the clubhouse.” 

“It was good. I met Gemma and Chucky.” 

Daryl shifted and glanced back over at her. “Gemma? Well, you’re still here so I’m guessing everything went alright.”

Beth turned back to him and nodded. “Was she supposed to scare me away or something?” 

“She typically scares everyone away,” Daryl laughed. “Let’s just say she doesn’t play nice with other women. I’m sure Tara could explain to you how their first encounters went.” 

Beth smiled, “So Gemma must already approve of me, huh?” 

Daryl scoffed, “You don’t need Gemma’s approval anyway.”

Beth lightly kicked Daryl back before breaking eye contact first this time. “I originally wanted to come here and talk to you so I could apologize. The whole situation with Jesse and I guess the cops too.”

“Water under the bridge.” Daryl scratched his chin before sliding his hand back under his head. He seemed a little fidgety to Beth and she couldn’t help but find it cute. “If Merle hadn’t seen you, the cops wouldn’t be an issue.”

“Why did your brother call the cops on you?” Beth knew that might have been pushing a little too far into his personal life but when was she ever going to get the chance to bring it up again when it was already the topic at hand?

“Because he’s a dumbass. Ain’t no other way to say it.” Daryl paused and changed the subject, “What’d you do to lose your phone and car?”

Beth sighed, “My brother found out that I had been talking to you and he freaked out. Then my parents found out. I got a speech from my dad and my mom took my car and phone.”

“Guess I’m a bad influence.”

“Not at all. I think it was just the age thing.” Beth wasn’t too sure she should tell Daryl that her dad actually knew his dad. She wasn’t sure how Daryl would take that and she didn’t want to disrupt the smooth flow they already had going. He was being _really_ nice compared to how she had technically seen him any time previously and she didn’t want to risk changing that by pressing the wrong button.

“Well, I guess I should officially apologize for being an ass the last time we talked. So… I’m sorry ‘bout that.” 

“Water under the bridge,” Beth repeated his words. She let a little bit of silence fill the air, never having felt this relaxed. Or at least not in a long time. It was almost odd. “You know how I told you that I liked you? Well… I really did mean that. That’s kind of the reason why I’m here.” Beth shrugged more so to herself, “I missed you.” 

Daryl chuckled, “Yeah, I could tell you’re serious. Especially since you came back after last time.” He chewed on the side of his thumb again. “After having you pop up so frequently there for a while, it felt weird when you just disappeared.” 

Beth smiled. He knew she was serious and maybe that was his way of saying he missed her too. Either way, she’d take it. Her presence affected him. 

“Still hard to believe though. You chasin’ after me,” Daryl clarified. 

Beth wasn’t sure what came over her in that very moment but she was feeling rather giddy. Maybe it was just childish, but she sat up and slid off the tailgate to catch Daryl’s attention. He sat up and stared at her rather perplexed before she walked over towards the playground equipment. She pulled the latch up on the chain link fence and allowed herself entrance before taking a seat on one of the two vacant swings. She swayed back and forth on the swing, watching as Daryl slowly followed her footsteps and leaned against the fence while standing in the opening with his arms crossed.

Beth grinned. “And now you’re chasing me.”

Daryl tried to suppress a laugh and rubbed his face while shaking his head. “Okay, ya got me. Happy?”

“More than happy,” Beth replied. She waited until Daryl sat down on the swing next to her before she continued. “So my age doesn’t bother you? Honestly.”

Daryl shrugged. “Maybe a little. I don’t know… S’hard to explain.” 

“Try me. I’m all ears.”

Daryl only shook his head.

“You can talk to me. I don’t bite. And it’s not like I’m going to use your words against you or something,” Beth tried.

“Just feel like you should be chasin’ after someone your own age. Like you’re wastin’ you’re time with me,” Daryl slightly muttered. 

“You don’t think you’re good enough?” Beth stopped swaying back and forth and focused her stare on Daryl. He had his gaze locked onto his feet while he gave a partial shrug. “Why?” 

“Not really a road I wanna travel right now.”

“Sorry,” Beth apologized. She chewed on the side of her mouth and cursed mentally. She told herself not to pry and push the wrong button and yet here she was, pushing the wrong damn button. She just wanted to hug him now. 

“S’ok,” Daryl nodded. “…You do realize you’re gonna have to call someone to come get ya? Shithead number one and shithead number two have been on my ass since they couldn’t keep me detained and couldn’t get a warrant. They catch you with me and they’ll try their damnedest to set everything off again.”

“The cops? I noticed they were sitting down the road a little ways. So they’re following you?” Beth questioned. 

Daryl sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Unfortunately, yeah. Can’t go anywhere without them tailin’ me. It’ll all blow over eventually though so I ain’t worried ‘bout it. Just annoying as hell.” 

“Isn’t stalking a little above their pay grade?” Beth raised an eyebrow. She managed to get a laugh out of Daryl.

“You would think. I guess when you’re as determined as they are, they won’t take no for an answer.”

“Hmm, sounds like me.” Beth tapped her bottom lip and looked to be in deep thought before giggling. 

“Glad to know I have three stalkers now. Or should I make that four with Jesse?” 

Beth quickly bit her lip and glanced over at Daryl only to find him smiling. She felt relieved to know that he was joking. Things could have ended a lot worse for her and for Jesse when he found out.

“I’m really sorry I lied about all of that. And my age. I just… I wasn’t thinking at the time. All I thought was that you would never talk to me if you knew I was really only seventeen.”

“I’m sure you would’ve come clean eventually. No worries.” Daryl shrugged. 

Beth stared down at her feet as she rocked back and forth on her heels. She had a feeling her age was going to continue to be a problem until she turned eighteen. It was hard to believe everything would have been okay if Daryl’s brother hadn’t called the cops. Even stranger than that, Daryl’s brother had enough problems of his own with the law, or so it seemed, and now he was trying to drag Daryl down. She may not have known how their relationship really stood but it kind of pissed her off. 

It was beginning to get dark out now and Beth wondered what time it was getting to be. If someone hadn’t already tried to contact Haley, Beth was shocked. She didn’t give anyone a heads up that she was going anywhere other than back home after school. She’d probably get another lecture to say the least. It wasn’t like there was anything else that could be taken from her. Her parents couldn’t physically take Daryl away. 

“I don’t want to go home,” Beth groaned. “Everyone’s just going to make a big fuss over nothing.”

“They only fuss because they care. Probably wouldn’t hurt to give ‘em a call and let ‘em know what’s going on if they don’t know you’re here,” Daryl suggested. 

“It’d be easier if they _didn’t_ care…” The words slipped from Beth’s mouth before she could register exactly what she was saying. She clamped her mouth shut and cautiously turned to look back at Daryl. 

“You should be glad they do.” Daryl focused his stare out towards the parking lot. He lowered his voice as if he didn’t want anyone to hear, “Not everybody gets that.” 

“No—that’s not what I meant… I mean… Sorry.” Beth forced herself back to her feet and walked over to the fence before placing her back against it and standing a few feet ahead of Daryl. “I really suck with words.” 

“Yeah, you and me both.” Daryl fished his cell phone out of his pocket and tossed it at Beth. She just barely caught it, not expecting him to just throw it at her. He got up off the swing and walked towards the exit of the small fenced in playground before glancing back at her. “Make whatever call you need to make. I’ll give ya some space.”

Beth nodded as she watched him walk away like she was in a trance. He stopped at his truck for a brief moment, leaning into the passenger side before shutting the door and taking a step back. She could see the slightest flicker of a flame from his lighter in the darkening sky and her eyes followed the glowing ember of his cigarette as he walked over towards the clubhouse. 

Releasing the breath she didn’t realize she was holding, Beth stared down at the cell phone in her hand. Daryl’s cell phone. Today was turning out to be one very strange day. She honestly wouldn’t have ever pictured it going this well. Daryl was like a completely different guy. He was being eerily nice. She wasn’t sure if that was just who he was deep down and the anger was a show or what. This did kind of mark the first time she had been around him without anyone else in sight. Maybe he was a total softie and he didn’t want anyone to see it.

Beth grinned as her thoughts went wild before returning her attention to the mobile device. She flipped it open and decided to try Maggie’s cell. She didn’t want to risk bringing Haley down with her anymore than what she possibly already did. She couldn’t picture calling Jesse and asking him to come pick her up. There really wasn’t anyone else. The only problem was that Maggie wasn’t answering her phone. 

Beth hung up and tried the home phone. She crossed her fingers and prayed that maybe, just _maybe_ , Maggie would pick up. As long as it wasn’t Shawn. But it was her dad that answered.

“Hi, daddy. Before you say anything, everything’s okay. I was just wondering if Maggie could come to the phone really quick though?” Beth bit her lip. She didn’t even want to know what her parents could possibly be thinking right now. Why she wasn’t home, where she was it, how she got there… 

Hershel didn’t say a whole lot but he did end up putting Maggie on the phone. Beth didn’t want to go into details if she didn’t have to, so she just asked Maggie if she could come pick her up at Teller-Morrow. She didn’t have much of a choice since Daryl couldn’t risk leaving TM with the cops waiting for the bait. And there was no way she was going to ask Jax or someone else to give her a ride. She wasn’t getting on the back of a motorcycle for nothing. Well… unless it was with Daryl maybe…

Luckily, Maggie agreed to pick her up and she seemed remotely calm about it. Beth felt relieved. Maggie would pick her up and then she could just get the lecture whenever they got home. She wasn’t exactly sure how much Maggie knew about what was going on but she could only assume she was by far the better choice between her, Shawn, and their parents. 

Beth walked out towards the parking lot before she spotted Daryl sitting on one of the picnic tables by the clubhouse entrance. She smiled as she drew nearer to him and handed him his phone before sitting next to him. She still had a little time.

“I called my sister. She’s on her way,” Beth filled him in. 

Daryl nodded as he put his cigarette out beside him. “So if I don’t hear from ya or rather, if I don’t see ya around, I’m just gonna assume you’re on house arrest?” He smirked. 

“Most likely,” Beth laughed. “But it’s worth it. I wanted to see you.” She had the dying urge to make a move, mostly wanting a kiss. She knew she probably shouldn’t but when would she see him again? She had no way to contact him and she probably wouldn’t be sneaking back to TM anytime soon. 

Beth leaned over and stole a quick kiss on Daryl’s cheek before she jumped down and turned back to look at him just before she saw headlights shining into the lot. She smiled and he wore a slight smirk. Maybe not exactly what she was wanting but it was close. 

When Beth turned towards the parking lot though, it wasn’t Maggie driving their dad’s old Suburban. It was Shawn’s truck and Shawn was in the driver’s seat, Maggie riding passenger. 

So maybe Maggie did get caught up on what she missed.


	18. Chapter 18

As soon as Beth saw the driver's side door opening she picked up her pace. What in the world was Maggie thinking telling Shawn and bringing him along? Shawn was most likely determined to say or do something now that Daryl was right there in view. Maybe Beth should have just asked Daryl if one of the guys could give her a ride home after all. It would have avoided this confrontation.

"Shawn, don't—" Beth grabbed her brother by the shoulder and pushed him back. Only Shawn hardly budged and his glare was already locked on Daryl, who hadn't moved from where he sat on top the picnic table.

"I don't believe it. This guy— _this_ guy? Daryl's the guy from the bar? When you called me to come pick you up?" Shawn broke his glare long enough to glance over at Beth.

Beth hadn't really put two and two together so it took her a minute to realize that Shawn had never seen Daryl before to put a face to the name. Well, technically speaking. And now he recognized him from the brief encounter outside of Jake's Bar.

Beth could only blink in response as the gears in her head felt as though they had come to a screeching halt. She snapped out of it when Shawn started moving again, a half strangled yelp escaping from her mouth as she tried frantically to stop him. She heard Maggie exit from the vehicle now but everything seemed to be moving in a rather fast pace. _Too_ fast.

"Shawn, come on. Just get back in the truck and we can talk about everything when we get home." Maggie made her way around the truck and hesitated a moment but when she noticed Shawn wasn't stopping she kept moving right along with her siblings, closer and closer to Daryl.

"Stay the hell away from my sister, Dixon!" Shawn yelled.

" _Shawn_ ," Beth hissed his name but it was already too late. She watched as Daryl hopped down off the picnic table and shoved his hands in his pockets before walking over towards the three of them. Her heart was racing in her chest. Daryl wore a stern expression and he looked like he could kill.

Daryl stopped just in front of Shawn giving him a once over. It didn't settle well with Shawn though because he broke free of Beth and Maggie's grip and took a step forward, glaring. There was absolutely nothing that could tear Beth's stare from the two as she could only pray that Shawn didn't try to hit him.

"Or what?" Daryl challenged.

Shawn opened his mouth but clamped it shut immediately after. Daryl must have sensed that Shawn was just blowing off steam because Shawn couldn't think up a comeback right on the spot. Maggie stayed quiet but her eyes were locked on Daryl. Beth's siblings were powerless—there was nothing they could do but be angry.

Daryl turned to Beth in that moment, making her freeze. His eyes met hers just before he gently placed a finger under her chin and tilted her head up, his lips brushing against hers in a kiss. Beth felt her heart flutter as Daryl took his hand back and their eyes met again. She couldn't refrain from smiling as another smirk crossed his lips. It was odd how he had that effect on her. It felt like everything else just melted away in that moment. She never would have seen that move coming from him.

When Daryl stepped back and turned around to head for the clubhouse without a word, Beth finally turned to look over at Maggie and Shawn. Both of their mouths were slightly agape in shock.

"We're going home." Shawn turned abruptly snatching Beth by the arm and pulling her toward the truck. Maggie followed after them.

Once they were all seated in the truck and Shawn started the engine, Beth bit her lip to keep herself from smiling again. Maybe she should actually thank Maggie for bringing Shawn now because if he hadn't thrown a fit, Daryl wouldn't have kissed her. _On the lips_. That was all Daryl and if it was possible, Beth would be fucking dancing out of joy. She didn't care what anyone would have to say to her when she got home. They couldn't take anything else away from her; they couldn't destroy her current mood. She had a little over a week left of school, half of those days being nothing but finals. Then she had another week or so after that and she would be eighteen.

She was more than ready for whatever was to come.

\- - -

Once they were back home, Shawn was the first to storm inside. Maggie grabbed Beth's wrist and stopped her from going inside right away. Beth turned to face her as she released her wrist.

"I get it, I do. But I think your hormones are doing more of the talking than your brain, Beth. You have no idea what you are getting yourself into. You're going to end up getting hurt one way or another and I don't want to be the one to say I told you so. Dad may not know Daryl like he knows the others Dixons but by my judgment, he can't be much different. That… kiss?" Maggie cringed at the word, "He did that to try and piss us off. He didn't do it for you."

Beth crossed her arms in defense. "The only thing that's hurting me is that none of you will let me do what I want to do. I want to see him and be with him and all you guys are doing is trying to pull me away from him. You're pushing me away from this house because all of your guys' over the top dramatic speeches. You don't know him."

"Oh really? I recall you _crying_ over a guy just a few days ago. And I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess it's the same guy you were just with. The guy that you called an asshole." Maggie crossed her arms as well.

"That was different. It was a misunderstanding." Beth almost regretted telling Maggie about a 'particular guy'. But in her defense, she really thought she was done trying with him. "Daryl's not an asshole."

Beth turned her back to Maggie and headed for the house now. The screen door screeched open and Beth immediately noticed that their father was already well aware of what happened. Hershel was standing on the porch waiting for her and Maggie to join him.

"Shawn filled me in very briefly. I'd like to hear the whole story from you though." Hershel opened the screen door and allowed Beth to enter inside first. He and Maggie followed right behind while shutting the door. "Dining room. Now. Everyone."

Everyone did as Hershel said and filled in around the table. Beth kept her composure. They had to hear her out. She wasn't a little baby anymore. She was entitled to do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted. She wasn't about to just stop seeing Daryl because of them.

"Beth, would you care to explain your side of the story? Preferably from the beginning," Hershel started.

"There's nothing to say. I met Daryl, I liked him, I started seeing him, and I still like him. What more do you want?" Beth replied.

"How about the fact that he's an arrogant prick and he's a hell of a lot older than you?" Shawn shot at Beth.

"Shawn," Hershel warned. He sighed as he directed his attention back to Beth, "Your brother does have a point. I need more of an explanation than that, Beth."

"Why do you guys care so much? What I do doesn't affect anyone else. I'm gonna be eighteen. I want to be treated like an adult."

"Then you need to act like an adult," Maggie retorted.

"And you guys need to stop smothering me! If I'm making a mistake, then fine. I need to learn on my own. But I'm not going to stop seeing Daryl just because you guys want me to." Beth got up from her seat and pushed her chair in. "Oh, and as you can see, just because you took my car and phone away doesn't mean I'm going to stop either."

Now it was Beth's turn to storm away as she climbed the stairs and headed for her room. She was done talking to them. They weren't listening anyway. All they wanted to do was keep trying to say how bad of a guy Daryl was and how much she needed to stop doing what she was doing. What did they know?

Daryl obviously had no problem kissing her in front of Shawn and Maggie. She was making progress with him and she wasn't about to back down. Nothing was going to change.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanted to say a quick thanks for the comments, kudos, and bookmark!

Apparently Beth had gotten through to her family, or at least some of them, because she got her car and cell phone back the next morning before leaving for school. It was Maggie who had ended up sticking to her side, saying that Beth had to make her own mistakes and learn from them. It was exactly what Beth had said to them more or less and Maggie was reinstating it.

Beth had no intentions of abusing her privileges, she just didn't fully understand why it was such a big deal. She was staying in school and she was far from failing any of her classes. In fact, she still had straight A's even with everything that had been going on lately. So her family definitely couldn't use the excuse that she was too distracted. And Daryl was a good guy. He hadn't done anything to prove otherwise.

But when Beth returned to school the next day things felt different. She noticed there were a few people staring at her. She was certain they were staring at her. Maybe people had been staring at her for the past few weeks and she didn't even realize it until now…

Except for when she sat down in chemistry, the lingering eyes all caught her as if she were the main attraction of the classroom.

Beth shrugged it off and ignored it. She was probably just overreacting. She felt more focused on what was around her for the first time in a while, that had to be it. So she just treated that day of class just like any other and enjoyed Jesse's company.

It was lunch time before she knew it and she stopped at her locker before heading to the cafeteria. She had just been meeting Haley there rather than walking together since there was no need to keep anything a secret anymore. Shawn was well aware of what was going on now and the rest of the school? Well, Beth didn't care if they knew who Daryl was or not. It didn't matter to her.

Beth shut her locker and turned on her heels only to gasp and almost fall backwards. A senior guy who went by the name Brent was standing there practically on top of her and she hadn't heard him even approach. She stared back at him, waiting for him to explain his actions.

"Sorry, I just…" Brent put his hands up to show his innocence. He took another step closer to Beth causing her to lean back out of discomfort due to the close proximity. He lowered his voice, "Is it true?"

"Is _what_ true?" Beth narrowed her eyes. She didn't ever recall speaking to Brent, and of all her friends no one else really knew him either. He was just one of those guys everyone knew by name. Sort of the jock type.

Brent's eyes seem to wander over Beth before he shook his head and bolted. Beth wasn't sure what that was all about but it certainly gave her the creeps.

Beth went straight to the cafeteria after that and sat down at her usual table that consisted of Haley, Sasha, and Jimmy. She was hoping Haley would beat them there so she could ask her if she had a clue what was going on.

And as if right on cue, Haley made her way to the table and took a seat across from Beth. She smiled but she didn't get a word in before Beth started to question her.

"What's going on? A lot of people have been staring at me today and Brent stopped me at my locker and asked if 'it's true'. What does that mean?"

"Don't get mad," Haley started. It was a surefire way to get Beth worked up even more as she listened. "There have been some rumors going around but this has been going on for a while now."

"What rumors? How long?" Beth had apparently been trapped in her own world that she never noticed it until now; the stares, the whispers.

"I just figured people would forget about it and move on. I didn't say anything to anyone because I thought that might make it look suspicious, like I was trying to defend you. I mean… If I was to defend you against the rumors, that usually increases the rumors spreading faster. So I thought if I didn't say anything at all then people would get tired of it."

"What are people saying?—Is this because I've been hanging out with Jesse? Because someone overheard about Daryl?" Beth didn't necessarily blame Haley. She understood where she was coming from and it made sense when she gave it some thought. But the only thing that could possibly fuel any type of rumor was something that was new with Beth, and that narrowed it down to two people.

"Just don't worry about it, alright? It'll all blow over soon enough." Haley untwisted the cap on her Mountain Dew and took a sip. "You know how people get at the end of the school year. They're bored and they want gossip so they make shit up. Don't let it get to you."

Beth refrained from saying anything more about the topic as Jimmy took a seat next to her. She forced a smile as he returned one, his smile being a lot more genuine.

"Everything okay?" Jimmy asked, glancing between Beth and Haley.

"Everything's great." Beth got up from her seat and left the table to get something to eat. The last thing she needed was for Jimmy to start pestering her. He still felt a little clingy. He must have some form of hope that Beth would want to start dating him again. But what was she supposed to do? She didn't want to necessarily tear his heart out and stomp on it. Being friends with him was as good as it was going to get for Jimmy because Beth had no intentions of "rekindling the flames". She had Daryl and that was that. She couldn't help but think of when she would get to see him again. Hopefully sooner rather than later.

Screw rumors. Beth didn't even care what they were. All she had to do was make it through next week and it would all be over. In the meantime, she would just keep her mind busy with finals and Daryl. Mostly Daryl though.

\- - -

The rumors only seemed to escalate the next day. Lucky for Beth, it was Friday. She could put all of this behind her and enjoy the weekend before the final week of her junior year. That was all there was to it.

Beth was sitting at her usual lunch table while shutting everyone out that was around her with the exception of Haley. So when she heard Haley ask Jesse what was wrong, it brought her attention back to the table as she noticed Jesse was standing beside them. Jesse never approached them at lunch.

"Jesse?" Beth stared at him, confused. He looked… perturbed. It was certainly unsettling for Beth.

Jesse glanced around nervously before answering. "It's your brother. He's persistent."

"What do you mean? Did he say something to you?" Beth took a moment to search out Shawn in the cafeteria but didn't spot him. Jesse was fine earlier in chemistry so Shawn must have gotten to him sometime between then and now.

"He asked me to plant drugs on Daryl."

The next thing Beth even registered was that Haley was making a desperate attempt at reaching her across the table and pushing her back down to her seat. Beth was fuming, seeing red. How could Shawn sink this low? Sure, he was clever but this?

"I'm gonna kill him…" Beth seethed. "You're serious?"

"I wish I was kidding but uh… I don't know what to do here." Jesse scratched the back of his neck.

Once the initial wave of anger passed, it was replaced with fear. Beth felt panicked. Would Shawn really go through with something like this? He was trying to pin Jesse and make him plant drugs on Daryl so that Daryl could be arrested for possession. _That_ was the way Shawn was trying to put an end to this?

"What do you mean you don't know what to do? You're not thinking about going through with his plan, are you?" Haley questioned, taking over for Beth.

Jesse sighed in defeat. "He said if I don't do it he'll call the cops on me. I don't want to go to jail."

"Wait—you _can't_ go to jail though… Aren't you seventeen?" Haley looked like she had just discovered candy for the first time, her face lighting up.

"I flunked freshman year… And I'm a senior," Jesse admitted.

"Shit…" Haley crossed her arms and sank back in her chair.

Beth shook her head, "He's bluffing. He has to be bluffing. Shawn wouldn't stoop this low."

"He could have fooled me."

"Well… can't you just get rid of… ya know? You can't be arrested if you don't have anything," Haley tried again.

"Yeah well uh, long story short I can't get rid of what I have in my basement if you catch my drift." Jesse ran his hands over his head. "I can't do this."

Beth felt like she was about to pull her hair out and cry. Things were bad enough with the ignorant ass people in her high school and just trying to see Daryl as it was. "What if… What if you tell Shawn that you did… plant the drugs? And you just give Daryl a heads up that the cops will try coming after him again? Just explain everything to Daryl."

"I already got one black eye from him, do I look like I'm crazy? No matter what I do here I'm dead."

"Wait a minute, what? I thought you said some random guy—" Beth was cut off.

"I'm not on the greatest terms with him, okay? He thought I called the cops on him. I told him I didn't though. Because I didn't. If I do this, he'll kill me." Jesse looked like he was about to break down. All of the pressure was on him.

"Sounds better than jail to me," Haley muttered.

"I don't have his number otherwise I'd call him myself. Maybe I can find him after school?" Beth suggested.

"Not a good idea, yo. If this shit goes down that your brother is trying to pull, it'll only make things worse for him."

"So what do we do then? Can't you talk Shawn out of it?" Haley turned to Beth.

"I'm not gonna go through with it," Jesse spoke up. "If you can't talk him down or whatever and if he's serious, then I guess you won't be seeing me on Monday." Jesse shrugged and hung his head.

"No, that's not fair—we'll figure it out. Don't worry about this." But it seemed like Haley's words fell on deaf ears because Jesse just turned and walked away.

Beth bit her lip. She couldn't even form any words. She just hoped Jesse didn't resent being friends with her and Haley. She felt like she used him to get closer to Daryl and now that all of this was happening, it was dragging him down too.

This was what it came down to. Jesse or Daryl were facing jail time, maybe even both. Sometimes she hated her brother and this was certainly one of those times. She needed a plan, and fast.


	20. Chapter 20

When Beth got home from school that same day the anger had revisited her. She wasn't able to run into Shawn before leaving and now she had one choice left, and that was to wait for him to return home. The way she saw it this was her first approach, maybe her only approach too. She had to get to the bottom of this before Shawn did something stupid and put Jesse and/or Daryl in jail.

Shawn didn't come straight home from school though. That was the first problem of the day, all other things aside for a moment. So Beth waited for him while remaining seated at the dining room table flipping through pages of math notes for the upcoming final. She couldn't focus on the notes. They were just a bunch of letters and numbers, equations, mumbo jumbo. But at least pretending to study kept her parents off her back for the time being.

Beth heard the screen door squeak open and smack shut against the doorframe as she all but jumped out of her seat to see who it was. She ended up coming face to face with Shawn right there. _Three hours_ after school was out. The nerve!

"You threatened Jesse?" Beth started in as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. She had to remind herself to try and stay cool about the situation at hand. If she lost her temper she wouldn't be helping anyone.

Shawn gave her an exasperated look before walking passed her and into the dining room himself. "Why would I threaten Jesse, Beth?" He set his things down on the table and turned to look back at her.

"You told him to set Daryl up and that if he didn't follow through you were going to report him to the police." If Shawn was trying to get Beth to think Jesse had made this all up he was sorely mistaken.

"Look, it was a fluke okay? I was pissed and I thought that was definitely one way of keeping you… It was my way of keeping you away from _him_. Okay?" Shawn ran a hand through his hair and sighed, "Jesse already talked to me again and told me he wasn't going to go through with it. So can we just forget about it?"

"Forget about it? You want me to forget about it?" Beth closed her eyes and took a deep breath before refocusing on Shawn. "You were going to send them both to jail when neither of them have done a single thing to hurt anyone."

Shawn shrugged, "Maybe it'll scare the shit out of Pinkman and he'll start cleaning up his act then. Since you keep hanging around him, it wouldn't hurt. Hell, I'd be doing him a favor."

"Who are you?" Beth dropped her arms back down at her sides. "The Shawn I know wouldn't be doing all of this. It's not just some funny joke. What you said to Jesse was serious."

Shawn picked his things back up from school and took one last look at Beth. "I should be asking you the same question."

\- - -

It was off. That's all that mattered to Beth. Shawn said it himself. He had talked to Jesse and Jesse said he wasn't going through with it. Therefore Shawn wasn't calling the cops on anyone. The thought still didn't entirely put her at ease though. Just knowing that it was that simple, that easy to frame someone and have them locked away in jail. It was absolutely ruthless.

The sinking pit in Beth's gut only worsened when Monday rolled around and Jesse wasn't in class. She couldn't focus on a damn thing when all her mind could think was that Shawn lied. Jesse was in trouble. Jesse had been arrested. _Something_ happened to him. There was no excuse for him not to be in class. It didn't make sense.

The first chance Beth got she went to the restroom and tried to call Jesse's cell phone. It was the only shot at privacy she'd get during school and without getting in trouble by the faculty. The only thing she received was a steady ring for thirty seconds before his voicemail picked up ("Yo, you've reached Jesse. Leave it at the beep.") So she hung up and headed back to class, the panic still eating away at her.

\- - -

"There could be a whole lot of reasons why Jesse isn't here." Haley was once again trying to justify what was happening as she picked at her French fries.

"Like what?" The chatter of the cafeteria was enough to send Beth over the edge for some odd reason, driving her crazy. It just seemed so much louder today of all days, serving to amplify her already present headache.

"Like… maybe he has a doctor appointment? Family problem. Maybe he's just taking a sick day for himself."

"I doubt he'd be taking a sick day the day before finals begin. I tried calling him but he didn't answer. And I haven't heard anything back." Beth reached over and took a few fries from Haley.

"If you said Shawn was faking it, then he was faking it. I don't think he'd really lie to you about that. But he's your brother so I guess you'd know better than me."

"I don't know what or who I believe right now…" Beth mumbled. "Things have just gotten way too out of hand. And none of this would have happened if it weren't for me."

"How do you figure? It's not your fault, it's Shawn's. And Daryl's brother's… Merle? Maybe older brothers were just meant to be a pain in the ass," Haley reassured her.

Beth smiled weakly at her comment. Haley had a point—a point Beth hadn't noticed. Older brothers were a pain in the ass. First it was Merle stirring shit up and calling the cops on his own brother with false accusations. Now it was Shawn looming over their heads and threatening to frame Daryl and get him locked up. And apparently if anyone was in his way, they'd go down too… i.e., Jesse.

But this was going too far. Way too far.

\- - -

Beth tried to call Jesse again once she got home only to receive the same response: ringing for thirty seconds before voicemail picked up. It seemed as though she would be having another conversation with Shawn whenever he got home. She had to get to the bottom of this. If Shawn did call the cops on Jesse then she would at least know where he was and she could attempt to get him out.

Hell, who was she kidding? How did she ever expect to get anyone out of jail? Her good looks and charm? That was just a joke waiting to happen. She hoped even more that Shawn was telling the truth.

Beth's phone started to go off, startling her as she quickly snatched it off her bed and glanced down at the screen. It was a number her phone didn't recognize from the address book that had been programmed. She felt a little leery about answering calls that she didn't know who it was but she figured she was in no position to pass it up. For all she knew, it could be Jesse from a different number.

"Hello?" Beth answered with a questioning tone.

"Hey, this is Beth right?"

Beth recognized the voice but for the life of her couldn't put a face to it. She let out an audible _uhh_ before the man continued.

"It's Jax. Blonde guy from TM."

Beth felt like smacking herself in the head. "Yeah, yeah. Jax…" _Jax?_ How in the world did he get her number? "What's… up?"

"I was hoping you might know something that I don't. Have you seen Daryl lately?"

"I haven't seen him since I was there at TM the last time. Why? What's going on?" Beth gripped her phone tighter, keeping it pressed to her ear. She wasn't going to think too much about it. She was going to hear Jax out. Everything was okay.

Jax sighed into the receiver. "Is there any way we can meet up? I'd like to talk in person, see if either of us can make sense of this."

Beth wanted to ask what they were going to try and make sense of but thought better of it. "I can be at TM in about twenty minutes."

"Okay, great. I'll see you then." _Click_.

Beth lowered her phone from her ear and flipped it shut. Her gaze was locked onto the blanket that covered her bed she was currently sitting on. Why was it that none of this sounded good?

Beth gathered up her purse and tossed her cell phone in before grabbing her car keys and heading downstairs. She didn't let her mind go wild until she was seated behind the wheel and driving toward TM.

Jax didn't sound very reassuring, if that was even the word. He sounded a bit worried if anything. Was Daryl MIA as well? And if Jax was calling and asking her if she'd seen Daryl… That meant something. It meant that something was definitely wrong. Something happened to Jesse and Daryl and for some reason Beth didn't think that was a coincidence. If Shawn was behind all of this, if Shawn _lied_ to her…

Why did things always seem to spiral way out of control?


	21. Chapter 21

Beth pulled into Teller-Morrow and immediately killed the engine, bolting from her car as if it were about to explode. She could no longer hide her panic with the knowledge that Daryl and Jesse had both seemed to disappear. But she told herself to calm down once she began to approach the garage and spotted Jax. The last thing she needed was for all the guys there to think she was crazy.

“Okay, what’s going on?” Beth started, staring at Jax. He ended up walking her a little ways away from everyone, outside. 

“All we know is that nobody can find him. We’ve all tried calling but it goes straight to voicemail. He was supposed to show up for work today but nobody has seen or heard from him since Friday.” Jax rubbed his arm and sighed. “He’s not at his apartment. His motorcycle is there but his truck is gone. His neighbor hasn’t seen him either. Unser hasn’t seen him at the station and Tara hasn’t heard anything to lead us to believe he’s in the hospital.” 

Beth’s initial thought was that these guys were damn thorough. But for them to be this concerned, it only increased Beth’s anxiety. She’d be lying if she said her stomach hadn’t clenched at the mentioning of him possibly being in the hospital. She was glad he wasn’t but that only meant they had no clue where he was.

“I know this is going to sound really off but… have you seen Jesse lately? He wasn’t at school today and I have a feeling that his disappearance might have something to do with Daryl’s. Maybe.” Just because this Unser fellow hadn’t seen Daryl at the station didn’t mean he wasn’t there. She wasn’t about to rule anything out. 

“Jesse? Yeah, I saw him earlier. He was at Jake’s, that’s how I got your number.” Jax paused, furrowing his brow, “You think he has something to do with all this?” 

So that was how Jax got her number. And Jesse? He hadn’t disappeared after all. No, he just decided to ignore all of Beth’s phone calls. He’d better hope he had a good reason…

“Call it a hunch. Not him directly, but he might know something we don’t.” Beth realized then that she had no clue where he lived and since he wasn’t answering his phone, that meant they had no way of finding him to talk. “You think he’d still be there? I don’t know where he lives.” 

“I doubt it but that shouldn’t be a problem.” Jax looked back towards the garage, “Juice! Come here!” He waved him over.

Juice, the guy with the shaved mohawk and tattoos on either side that Beth had met at the festival, jogged over to her and Jax. He nodded a hello in Beth’s direction before turning to Jax. “What’s up?”

“Got a job for ya. Find a Jesse…” Jax looked to Beth.

“Pinkman.” Beth finished for him. 

“This guy have something to do with Daryl?” Juice questioned.

“We’re about to find out. Go see if you can pull up an address,” Jax replied.

“On it,” Juice nodded. And with that, he took off for the clubhouse. 

Beth wondered how it would be possible for Juice to be able to retrieve that kind of information but she didn’t want to ask. If it was something illegal, it was always better just to pretend like she knew nothing about it. If Juice could find where Jesse lived that’s all that mattered in the moment.

It was a few minutes later when Juice returned with a folded up piece of paper. He handed it over to Jax with a grin. “It’s the only Pinkmans in the area. It’s gotta be it.” 

“Alright, thanks Juice.” Jax patted him on the shoulder and smiled over at Beth.

“You going alone or…?” Juice raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t think it’s anything to worry about but I’ll take Ope with us if you want to send him around back. We’ll take the van.” Jax grabbed Beth’s attention and led the way towards the black van. Juice headed back into the garage. 

“Okay, are you guys like undercover cops somehow or… something?” Beth couldn’t hold back anymore. With Juice being able to pull up an address in a matter of minutes and with the way they were talking, it felt a little… strange.

Jax cracked a smile before he walked around to the driver’s side. “Far from it. If you’re gonna be sticking around, you’ve got a lot to learn.” 

Beth hesitantly hopped into the passenger seat and shut the door just before she heard the back door open and shut. She looked back to see Opie, once again another guy she had met at the festival with the stocking cap and beard. She forced a smile, unsure of what to think of everything. As long as these guys were on her side she supposed she had nothing to worry about.

\- - -

Jax brought the van to a halt just outside a rather elegant looking two-story home. It was different from any other house she had ever seen, with an arched window by the front door surrounded by a brickwork pattern. Beth almost wanted to ask if they had the wrong address.

“This is your job, we’ll wait here.” Jax turned the ignition off to make it look less conspicuous. 

Beth nodded. She exited from the vehicle and walked down the sidewalk that led to the front door. She rang the doorbell and waited as she listened to the footfalls inside the house approach the door. 

A middle-aged blonde haired woman answered, her brow furrowed as she stared back at Beth. “Can I help you?”

“Hi… Mrs. Pinkman.” Beth fidgeted nervously hoping that she was indeed Jesse’s mom. The woman didn’t correct her so she continued, “I was just wondering if Jesse was home? I’m an old friend of his.” 

“He doesn’t live here anymore. I can give you the address he’s staying at though.” Jesse’s mom looked a little agitated at the mentioning of her son. “Hang on.” She shut the door, leaving Beth standing outside. 

Beth glanced back towards the street where Jax was parked and rubbed her arm. This little wild “goose chase” was going to continue until they found Jesse, which wasn’t here. Hopefully he’d be at the next address.

A minute passed before the woman opened the door again and handed a little piece of paper to Beth. She didn’t say anymore though, looking Beth over before retreating and shutting the door. 

Beth walked back to the van and got back into the passenger seat before she gave the paper to Jax. “He doesn’t live here anymore. It’s his parent’s house.” 

“Alright. On to the next place.” Jax put the vehicle in drive.

\- - -

The next stop was an older looking home that was a bit overgrown with different shrubbery. Jax killed the engine once more and Beth was no longer the only one getting out of the vehicle. Jax and Opie led the way to the front door and Beth followed along behind them, grabbing her cell phone from her pocket and dialing Jesse’s number again.

“His car’s here so he’s here,” Jax stated.

“He’s not picking up…” Beth hung up her phone and slid it back into her pocket. 

Jax tried the front door, knocking a few times and calling out to Jesse. Beth glanced around the place while they waited. But there still wasn’t any answer. 

“Maybe he’s not home?” Beth tried. For all they knew, he could have been abducted or something. Someone could have picked him up. That would easily explain why his car was there and he wasn’t answering. 

“No, he’s home.” Jax headed down the side of the house with Opie in tow. He tried a couple windows along the way but none of them seemed to budge.

“You can’t just break into his house—“ Beth gasped. 

Jax didn’t reply though as he tried another window, that one being unlocked. He got it open and already started climbing his way through. Opie followed without a question and Beth followed because she felt like she didn’t have a choice at this point. She could now officially mark “breaking and entering” onto her criminal record…

Opie took a quick sweep of the house while Jax walked down the hall towards the bedrooms. He stopped at the first one and nudged it open with his foot. Beth remained in the hall for that brief moment until she heard him curse under his breath. She whipped around the doorframe and stepped into the room slightly panicked knowing that Jax’s reaction wasn’t good. And it took her a minute before she realized what was wrong.

“Dumbass junkie…” Jax muttered. 

Jesse was passed out on the bed buried under the covers. Beth spotted the drug paraphernalia on the nightstand next to the bed and shook her head. _This_ was the reason why he didn’t come to school, giving her a heart attack? 

Opie stepped into the room behind Beth now and let out a small chuckle. “What exactly are we doing here again?” 

“He might know something about what happened to Daryl,” Beth replied. She immediately felt awkward when she let her mind reel in the whole scene. Here she was standing in Jesse’s bedroom with him passed out and Jax and Opie beside her. Not to mention they didn’t exactly use the front door or get invited in.

Jax lightly smacked the side of Jesse’s face a few times to try and stir him. He then grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him, easily fed up with the cat and mouse games of trying to track him down. Beth only hoped Jesse might know something after all this effort. “Wake up!”

Jesse’s eyes fluttered up as he groaned, batting at Jax’s arms to push him off. It took him a couple minutes before he snapped out of it, his eyes growing wide as he sat up. “Whoa, whoa—what the hell are you doing in my house? That’s a criminal offense, yo!” 

“Yeah? And so is this,” Jax pointed at Jesse’s nightstand. “You mind filling us in on what’s going on? Beth here says you might know what happened to Daryl.”

“I didn’t do shit. I haven’t seen him in a few days. So whatever happened, it wasn’t me.” Jesse rubbed his eyes. 

“You don’t have a clue where he could be?” Beth stepped forward now, trying to ignore the fact that Jesse wasn’t wearing a shirt. There was something about shirtless guys that no matter what, she kind of found it attractive and in this case, a little embarrassing. “You didn’t… hear anything?”

Opie and Jax switched their gaze to Beth at her words. She hadn’t explained that her brother could be behind this but to be honest, she was almost afraid to. She didn’t know a whole lot about the guys at TM and so far they were proving to be a force she didn’t want to mess with.

“If he’s missing, I have no clue where he is. It isn’t any of my concern,” Jesse replied. “Like I said, I haven’t seen him. I don’t know anything.”

Jax sighed and shook his head before he walked out of the room and left. Opie took one last look at Jesse and Beth before he turned to follow Jax. “Come on. Let’s go.” 

Once Opie left the room, Beth spotted Jesse’s phone on the floor by his bed. She picked it up and threw it at him. “Answer the next time I call you, dammit! I was worried. And I guess this explains why you didn’t show up at school today.” Beth crossed her arms. “I’m going to call you later and I expect you to answer. And you better be at school tomorrow.” 

Beth turned on her heels and walked out of the room before Jesse could say anything in response. Thankfully he hadn’t mentioned Shawn’s name but Beth still had a hunch her brother had something to do with all of this. It was still very possible that Shawn could have worked his way around Jesse and called the cops on Daryl. After all, Shawn returned home from school three hours later on Friday. And the fact that nobody has seen or heard from Daryl since Friday? It seemed a little suspicious.

Unsure of whether or not Beth could make her way back through the window in one piece, she exited from Jesse’s house through the front door. She made sure to lock it back and shut it behind her as she walked out to the van where Jax and Opie were already waiting. Beth hopped into the passenger side with a sigh. It felt like they were back to square one and no closer to finding Daryl.


	22. Chapter 22

Friday night went the same as usual for Daryl. After work all the guys from TM headed into the clubhouse for what they called "church". It was basically a meeting they had every Friday at sundown to discuss finances and business. Then after all their business was taken care of, they held a little party.

Daryl had never been one to really stick around for a party. He really wasn't much of a people person to begin with and just preferred to be alone. So as usual, he left pretty early, catching Jax on the way out so he knew he was leaving.

"One of these times I'm gonna have to get you to stay."

"Get me drunk enough and ya got yourself a maybe," Daryl smirked.

Jax laughed and shook his head. "Alright, I'll keep that in mind."

And with that, Daryl left. Jax understood why Daryl wasn't too fond of sticking around and he never gave him crap for it. If he did, it was only meant in a joking manner. Daryl was just thankful he met all of these guys. It gave him a stable job that wasn't going anywhere and it gave him people he could trust. Some people.

As Daryl drove home Beth crossed his mind. He thought back to the last time he saw her just a couple days ago and how they parted ways. He wanted to say he regretted that kiss. He did. He regretted the actions he took. He never should have done what he did in front of her siblings, making an ass of himself. But what did it hurt if they already had that opinion of him? It wasn't likely that they'd just up and change their minds. He wanted to kiss Beth and he technically got that. And with the way she was smiling she must not have minded it.

No matter how much Daryl racked his brain trying to figure out Beth she felt like a damn mystery. Why in the world was she still trying to come around? She seemed to care about him… but she barely knew him. He wasn't really sure what to do with the situation.

It wasn't long after he got back to his apartment that his phone went off. He had practically just walked in the door before pulling the phone from his pocket, seeing that it was his uncle, and answered.

"What do ya want, Jess?" Daryl locked the door behind him and threw his keys on the table.

"Hey, I know it's gettin' late but I just thought I'd run an idea by ya," Jess replied, getting right to the point.

"Okay? What's that?"

"You up for huntin' the rest of this weekend? Figured get up early enough and head out to the cabin in the morning." Jess seemed eager and it had been a while since Daryl had taken the time to actually go hunt. Hell, it'd been a while since he'd seen Jess.

"Sure, why not." Daryl caved.

\- - -

It was close to a two hour drive by the time Daryl had made his way out to Jess's cabin. He had his crossbow and buck knife in the seat beside him with the windows down. It felt nice. Made him wonder why he hadn't called up Jess and asked him to come hunting instead of the other way around. Driving down the dirt road being surrounded by trees and foliage always seemed to have a calming effect on him.

Daryl parked outside the cabin and shut his truck off. He checked his cell phone before deciding to turn it off and store it away in the glove box. He never got cell reception out here anyway so what was the point of leaving it on to drain the battery. He grabbed his things, attaching the knife's sheath to his belt and throwing the crossbow over his shoulder before heading inside to meet up with Jess and get their plan in motion.

Only Jess wasn't the only one there.

Once Daryl met eyes with his dad, he shot a glare in Jess's direction. Jess hadn't mentioned inviting his dad along. Daryl was under the impression that it was just going to be him and Jess. He set him up. Go figure.

"Dad," Daryl nodded his head in recognition. He only received a mere grunt in response, his father barely looking in his direction.

"It's been a while since ol' Will here has been out and about. Thought I'd call him up and get him out of that house for a bit." Jess tried to break the tension that was already forming in the room.

Daryl didn't say anything in response. Sure he had tried to stay in contact with his old man. He tried to have a relationship with him seeing as he was his only living parent. If it wasn't Will, all he had left was Jess and Merle. Sadly enough, Jess was the only one he got along with. But right now he wasn't his biggest fan.

Merle always seemed to get along with their dad more than Daryl ever did. They shared more of the same beliefs and together they were always talking down about everything and anyone that came to mind. Daryl never really had that mindset. If he was pissed off enough about something, sure. He supposed the "Dixon" side of him would come out then. Other than that he tried to mind his business, keep to himself, and stay quiet.

Whether Daryl was fully aware of it or not, he was in for one hell of a weekend.

\- - -

"Since when have you been the goddamn expert at tracking?" Will spoke, shooting the derogatory remark at Daryl. "You can't track for shit."

"Nah, I think he's on to something. Got a deer trail right here." Jess kept his voice an octave lower so not to scare any game away, pointing down at the tracks Daryl had spotted and started to follow.

Daryl didn't say a word. He was thankful for Jess taking his side because he knew his dad would never say he was right. His dad couldn't ever let him have that.

Will grumbled in response but nevertheless, he kept quiet for a while.

After tracking the deer for about a mile or so, Daryl cautiously approached the skittish animal staying down low and trying to stick behind the tree he planned to use for cover. He already had his crossbow loaded as he slowly raised it up to eye level and steadied himself. He locked onto the deer through the scope mentally noting that it was a 10 point buck. Not his best but not his worst either.

He'd be lying if he said he wasn't nervous with his father hovering not too far from where he stood.

Daryl lined it up and tried his best to keep his hands steady with that knowledge. After factoring in the wind, the angle, and the target, he took the shot near the shoulder in an attempt to hit vital organs. But once the bolt penetrated the animal, it fled. He would be lucky to get a deer with one shot and really, he had no problem going after the same one to try again or waiting for it to wear down. But under the circumstances, he cursed under his breath and waited for it.

Will scoffed, "That's what happens when ya use a crossbow. Made for pussies. Maybe one of these days you'll actually invest in something useful." He patted the hunting rifle he had hanging from his shoulder, "These is what real men use."

This time Jess and Daryl both remained quiet. Daryl had his reasons for using a crossbow over a rifle but that didn't matter. Daryl was a much more patient hunter than his father when it came down to it. He was more than willing to chase after the same deer for a good few hours whereas Will would take one shot and if he missed or it didn't take the deer down, he'd cuss up a storm. Will wasn't happy unless he got the kill in the first shot.

Daryl looked back to Jess and noticed the man was staring at him. Daryl could see the questioning look on his face as if Jess were asking if he was going to track it and finish the job. But when Daryl turned to face his dad, he shook his head. It wasn't worth it. So Daryl gave his dad the signal to take the lead and he fell back, following his footsteps.

"It'll probably be a while 'fore we come across another trail. Just scared off the one shot we had."

\- - -

They headed back for the cabin Saturday night and got some sleep before waking up bright and early the next morning to try it all again.

Sunday seemed to go about the same. They had been at it for a few hours by then and still came up with nothing. All the trails they came across went cold after crossing through a small creek or getting mixed up with a change in terrain.

It had been Will who finally called off the little hunting excursion, getting fed up with "chasing his shadow" and "running in circles". So the trio started to head back towards the cabin. Daryl was just thankful that it was over and he'd finally be able to get the hell out of there. Being around his dad for a couple hours was almost overdoing it, let alone an entire weekend.

"So much for all that. Waste of time. If ya had just let me or Jess take the damn shot, we'd have done bagged ourselves a decent buck."

Daryl lowered his head and kept his stare locked on the ground with each step he took. They couldn't get back to the cabin fast enough. Even though it was just the three of them, it was still a bit humiliating. But Daryl supposed he deserved that—he had it coming. He couldn't do anything right in his father's eyes and sometimes Daryl believed it himself.

He knew he should just ignore all the degrading insults his dad shot his way but it was hard to. It had been at least a couple years since his dad had actually hit him, punched him in the face so hard it nearly sent him falling back on his ass. It was just the wrong place at the wrong time. The physical reactions he could take. It was the verbal reactions that got to him more than anything. He felt defenseless around the man, never dared talk back to him or hit him in return. Not like he would if he were Merle. Merle was at least tolerable in comparison.

Daryl entered into the cabin first with Jess hot on his trail. He heard Jess shut the door behind him, meaning that Will hadn't followed them inside. At least not yet.

"Daryl—" Jess grabbed Daryl by the arm making him flinch away, turning to face him. "I'm sorry. I didn't think he'd be like this. Thought he was doin' a little better lately… Thought this would be good for the two of you to try and reconnect or something."

Daryl scoffed, his glare intensifying the longer he stood there. "Yeah? Well ya thought wrong. Ain't nothin' to reconnect. Some things never change."

He grabbed his keys and headed out the front door towards his truck. The sooner he could get out of there the better. As he threw the door open to his old beater of a truck and tossed his crossbow and knife back onto the seat, he chanced a glance back over toward the cabin. And when he noticed his dad off toward the side of the cabin, he froze.

"Dad?" His voice barely came out as a whisper to himself as he stared at the crumpled form of his old man on the ground. His heart was already racing as his mind tried to catch up with everything. Will wasn't moving.

"Dad—" Daryl dropped his keys and slammed his truck door before running over to him. He noticed his dad had his hand balled into a fist against his chest as he looked him over before jostling his arm in hopes of receiving a reaction out of him—something, anything. Even if it meant him coming to and hitting him for hovering so damn close and "crying like a bitch".

"Daryl?" Jess had come around the corner then and froze up as well.

Daryl looked back at him while trying to keep his composure. "Jess, help me."

\- - -

Jess drove and got them to the nearest hospital. Lucky for them, they were well aware of its location due to hunting accidents in the past. But this was no hunting accident. Will had suffered a mild heart attack.

Daryl slouched in the chair and buried his face in his hands, his right leg bouncing nervously waiting for someone to deliver the news. He was never a fan of hospitals and waiting rooms were just as bad as being an actual patient to him. The sights, sounds, and smells were repulsive. Add that to what had just happened and Daryl felt more nauseated than usual.

He needed fresh air. He needed a cigarette. He just needed to get out of that room for a while.

Jess had just returned to the waiting room when Daryl moved to get up out of his seat. He brushed past his uncle and headed for the exit of the hospital that led out toward the parking deck. Once outside, he took to the far corner of the parking deck away from the entrance where people would be walking in and out of the hospital before digging a cigarette out and lighting it. He sat down on the ground and propped his back up against the cement wall. He dug the heel of his palm into his eye, squeezing both of his eyes shut as he took a slow drag. He exhaled just the same trying to clear his mind.

He knew his dad had high blood pressure. He knew he already had some health complications. But a heart attack? He felt like all this was his fault. If he hadn't have been there, his dad wouldn't have been so angry. He wouldn't have gotten so worked up. They wouldn't be at the hospital right now.

"Daryl," Jesse had followed him outside as he walked over. Daryl only lowered his hand from his face and looked up at him. "Just thought I'd let ya know I called Merle, let him know what happened. Best before word gets out and he starts pointing fingers at us for excluding him."

Daryl nodded mindlessly as he raised his cigarette back to his lips.

"Told him it was just me and Will. Didn't let on that you're here. Avoid confrontation that way."

"Thanks," Daryl mumbled. He could feel Jess's eyes boring down on him but he decided to ignore it. He stared ahead at a vacant parking space instead. More specifically, the oil and grime that had stained the pavement over years of use.

"This ain't your fault, Daryl." Jess lowered his voice.

Daryl felt something wash over him in that moment. The back of his throat felt scratchy and his vision blurred. And he'd be damned if it weren't tears that were blurring his vision. He dropped the cigarette and smashed it with the tip of his foot before burying his face in his hands again.

\- - -

Daryl and Jess had ended up staying the night at the hospital to make sure Will definitely pulled through and that he was doing alright. Daryl had found one of those reclining chairs and fell asleep sometime late in the night. It wasn't until morning when he felt a hand on his shoulder slightly shaking him awake.

"Hey, I'm gonna go check out the cafeteria. See what they got for breakfast. You want anything?" Jess hovered over him.

Daryl rubbed his face. "No thanks…"

"Alright," Jess nodded. He took one last look at Daryl before leaving the room and down the hall out of sight.

Stifling a yawn, Daryl sat back up in the chair to send it forward with an audible click once it latched. He had seen a coffee pot last night just around the corner from where he was seated and made his way over to it. He grabbed a Styrofoam cup and filled it before walking back over to the chair he had just left.

Jess returned about ten minutes later empty handed. "Well, they don't have shit for breakfast."

Daryl forced a weak smile as Jess sat down on the bench seat beside him. After spacing out for a few minutes, the realization hit him. It was Monday. "Shit…"

"What? The coffee bad too?"

"No," Daryl rubbed at his temple. "I forgot I was supposed to work today."

"You're not gonna lose your job or anything, right? I'm sure if ya explain what happened they'll understand."

"Nah, nothing to worry about. I'll just talk to 'em when we get back." Daryl also realized then that he probably should have told someone where he was going. Jax at least. He didn't tell anyone he was going anywhere but really, he didn't know he was either until last minute. He didn't think it'd be that big of a deal.

It was another hour or two before a doctor came in to talk to Daryl and Jess. He explained what all had happened and the current shape Will was in. Everything seemed okay so far but they wanted to keep him in the hospital for a little while longer just to make sure. Apparently Will hadn't been taking the medication that was prescribed for him and he was a fairly heavy drinker and a smoker. All of that together on top of his age, stress, and any other underlying health conditions had caught up with him.

The doctor explained that they could see him now before he walked away but Daryl remained seated. Having already downed the coffee, he had started fiddling around with the Styrofoam cup the entire time the doctor was talking to them. He had it torn into a few different pieces splayed out on his lap.

"You gonna go see him 'fore we leave?" Jess snapped Daryl back out of his daze.

Daryl mulled it over for a moment. "Probably best I don't."


	23. Chapter 23

Beth called Jesse that night after breaking into his house with Opie and Jax. Thankfully he finally answered and she told him that he needed to get his act together. He couldn't just drop out of school being that close to graduating. So she put Haley on the job to get Jesse better and back in shape. Because she had Daryl to worry about.

Jax explained to Beth once they got back to TM that they would keep trying to get a hold of Daryl and try to find him. He told her that there was no need to worry and that he would call when they found out what was going on. So it left Beth with nothing to do but go to school, complete her finals for that day, and cross her fingers that she would hear back from Jax.

She felt like she was checking her phone practically every five minutes in hopes that she had a missed call or voicemail from Jax. It was killing her not knowing what happened to Daryl and the fact that none of the guys at TM had a clue where he was. And with how thorough they were, it was bad.

Jax had said that Daryl wasn't in jail because they had already checked it out. But Beth still had a bad feeling that Shawn was somehow behind all of this. He may not have used Jesse to fulfill his plan but it was still possible with Shawn. If he was determined enough, he'd find a way around it. Beth couldn't see Jesse lying about something like this. Sure he may have been a little high still but… No, there was no way Jesse would have gone through with Shawn's plans.

So with nothing else left in her power that she could do, she found Shawn as soon as finals were finished for the day. She didn't want a repeat of Friday where he didn't come home for God knows how long after school. She spotted him in the hall and grabbed him by the shoulder, making him spin around to face her. He looked a bit shocked.

"What? Something wrong?" Shawn searched her face for an explanation.

"What did you do?" Beth started.

"What did I do, what?" He looked genuinely confused.

"Your 'plan'. Did you go through with it? Because Daryl has just seemed to disappear into thin air."

"I told you that Jesse talked to me and he said he wasn't going to go through with it. So I backed off. I figured that covered it. I haven't done anything, Beth."

"Really? Because you seemed dead set on going through with it." Beth crossed her arms.

"Do you really think that low of me?" Shawn furrowed his brow. "I was pissed and that was the first thing that popped into my mind. It was stupid and I was careless but I didn't go through with it. I wouldn't go through with it."

Beth stared back at him trying to read his face, trying to see if he was really telling the truth. A part of her still didn't fully believe him but he did look hurt that Beth suspected him. But if Shawn didn't do anything, where the hell was Daryl? He wouldn't have just run off without saying anything to anyone.

Why did she feel so overwhelmed about this? She felt like she could cry, like somehow this was her fault that Daryl just disappeared.

"If Daryl is missing, I have no clue what happened or where he could be. I don't know how… close you are to him…" Shawn seemed to visibly grit his teeth at his own words, "But I'm sure he's around somewhere."

"That's it?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You're not going to yell at me? You're suddenly okay with this?" Beth found that to be suspicious. Shawn was pissed about her seeing Daryl and now he seemed strangely calm about it.

"I don't like the idea of you hanging out with him by no means. He's still an arrogant prick to me. But if that's what makes you happy then fine. I guess I'm just hoping you have enough sense that if things change, you'll stop. If he hurts you I won't think twice about my previous plan," Shawn explained.

Beth managed a smile as she threw her arms around him in an embrace. "Thank you, Shawn! You have no idea how much that means to me! You can trust me. I promise."

Shawn hugged her in return and patted her on the back. "Don't make me regret it…"

\- - -

Just as Beth took a seat behind the steering wheel of the Sable planning on heading home for the meantime, her phone rang. She jumped and her heart started racing as she grabbed her purse from the passenger seat and dug through its contents until she found it. Seeing that it was Jax, she couldn't help but smile. They must have finally found Daryl.

"You found him?" Beth answered, not even bothering with a hello. She was sure Jax would understand.

"Oh, hey. I didn't think you'd answer this early." Jax paused. Beth pulled her phone from her ear to see the time. It was going on two o'clock but she got out early on final days. "About that… Is there any way you can come over to TM?"

Beth's heart sank. "You didn't find him?"

"Can we talk when you get here?" Jax avoided answering her question which only made her worry that much more.

"Yeah. I'm on my way." She hung up and placed her phone in the center console. She prayed everything was okay. She wasn't sure how to read Jax so it didn't put her at ease. Did they or did they not find Daryl?

Apparently she would find out when she got there.

\- - -

Beth parked and exited her car. It looked like any other ordinary day at TM. Beth scanned the cars and came up empty when she realized Daryl's truck wasn't there. He seemed to be driving it lately and the fact that it wasn't there had her heart sinking all over again.

Before she could even walk over towards the garage, Jax was walking out to meet her. She walked a little ways toward him before stopping and allowing him to come the rest of the way. He didn't meet her eyes right away as he wiped his hands off on an old cloth, throwing it over his shoulder.

"What's going on?" Beth stared at him. The anticipation was killing her. What did he need to talk to her about in person? What was going on?

"Let's take a walk." Jax briefly looked her in the eyes before bowing his head and turning for the clubhouse. Beth wasn't getting a good vibe by his actions.

"Jax, I'm serious. What's going on? You're freaking me out. Did you guys find Daryl? Is he okay?" Beth followed beside him. He remained quiet as he opened the door to the clubhouse and allowed her to enter first. Beth tried to look him in the face before she walked inside but he still seemed to refuse to look at her in return.

But when Beth walked further into the clubhouse and saw Daryl, her heart fluttered. He was lying on his back on one of the sofas shooting a rubber band at the ceiling, catching it, and shooting it again. When he noticed he was no longer alone he let the rubber band fall back down ignored as he quickly sat up and got on his feet.

"Wait, this is why you wanted me to come over here?" Daryl looked to Jax, confused. Had Jax set them up?

"You asshole!" Beth turned around and shoved Jax while he laughed. "I thought something was seriously wrong! You wouldn't tell me anything!"

Jax raised his arms up and took a step back. "Guilty. But hey, you wanted me to call you when we found him. I did."

"But I thought something was wrong. I didn't think you guys found him yet… You suck." Beth tried to look mad but she couldn't. She looked over at Daryl and smiled. He was okay. He was right there in front of her in one piece. He wasn't hurt and he wasn't in jail. _He was okay._

"Chucky! Take a break. Give these two some space." Jax called out to the man who was roaming around from the kitchen to the bar. He gave a curt nod as he walked toward the exit with Jax just before Jax provided Beth and Daryl with a little sideways smirk. Then he turned and left with Chuck.

Beth looked at Daryl as he stared back at her. She wasn't even sure what to say. Her mind felt like it was running a million miles per second. After he had been missing since Friday, he was finally right there in front of her. It wasn't like she saw him every day but knowing he was missing…

"I had no idea he had this planned…" Daryl scratched the back of his neck.

Beth smiled as she crashed into him, wrapping her arms around him as tight as possible without hurting him or herself. She buried her face against his chest and took in his scent. Maybe she was crazy but she loved the familiarity of his scent and how warm she felt against him. When she felt him gradually wrap his arms around her in return, her smile widened. "You have no idea how worried I was. I'm so glad you're okay."

"Did I miss somethin'?" Daryl sounded puzzled.

Beth slowly released him, though she didn't want to, and backed up enough to look him in the face. "Jax called me yesterday and asked if I knew where you were. We were trying to find you. And he seemed worried so it made me even more worried. I thought you might have been arrested again… But Jax said he already checked. He checked everywhere. He didn't tell you?"

Daryl shook his head. "He didn't really say a whole lot. I called him earlier but I just got here not too long ago and he told me just to come in here. Wouldn't let me work." He paused, furrowing his brow, "Why would I be in jail again?"

"My… brother came up with some scheme that involved you and Jesse. But he didn't go through with it obviously," Beth briefly explained before switching the subject off of her brother. "Where were you then?"

"Was at the hospital most of the day yesterday and Sunday."

Beth's eyes widened as she looked him over. "What?—Are you okay? What happened?"

Daryl vaguely nodded chewing on the side of his mouth. He slightly fidgeted, looking down at the ground before meeting Beth's stare again. "Dad's not doin' good…"

"I'm sorry." Beth placed her hand over her mouth as her smile faded further at the news. She recalled him not being close with his family and that he had said something about trying to make amends with his dad. But she could tell he was upset about whatever happened.

She reached out a hand to grab Daryl's, her fingers just brushing across the backside of his hand before he jerked his hand back and out of reach all while taking a step back. He raised that hand to his mouth, chewing on the side of his thumb while crossing his other arm in front of his chest. He suddenly seemed stressed at her trying to reach out to him, like he was curling in on himself to avoid being touched.

"Are you okay?" Beth stared at him. She didn't know what to do or what to say to try and make anything better. She couldn't fit all the pieces of the puzzle together. He wasn't close with his family. He had a decent sized scar that she had noticed previously near his right collarbone. He seemed to have mood swings. Anytime she brought up anything to do with him, he seemed to change the subject. And he apparently didn't think too highly of himself.

Was it possible that he had been abused? Someone had to have made him like this. It was one thing for someone to back away because they just didn't like you. But Daryl seemed different. He didn't quite seem this bad before, even though she did get a hug from him. But he hesitated on that too. After mentioning his dad, his mood just seemed to fall…

"You were worried 'bout me?" Daryl disregarded Beth's question, easing his arms back down at his sides.

Beth hated that he wouldn't answer her but she gave him a nod. "I was scared something happened to you," she admitted. It was true and the more she thought about it, maybe he needed a little more reassuring.

Maybe he needed love.


	24. Chapter 24

There was hardly a time where something didn't make sense to Daryl. He could either see right through the problem or he could narrow it down by process of elimination. It was the not knowing that made him wary. He didn't like being confused and that was exactly what Beth was doing to him. He couldn't read her, couldn't predict her moves, couldn't figure anything out about her. Because she was so much different than the people he was used to meeting. Yet she was standing in front of him with a sad look on her face that almost resembled something sympathetic.

He really wished he would have turned Jess down on hunting. None of this would have happened then. He wouldn't have been around his dad, his dad wouldn't be in the hospital, and his mind wouldn't be trapped somewhere in the past. Just being around his dad was enough to set off his damn triggers. It didn't matter who it was—if they touched him, he flinched. He was half expecting to be hit or yelled at. And he felt fucking pathetic.

It only made him realize that much more that he didn't deserve someone like Beth. She was far too sweet and innocent to be dragged down with him, and he really couldn't pinpoint why she kept trying to hang around. When Beth had said she was worried about him, he honestly thought he was hearing things, that maybe his mind was just hearing what it wanted to hear. But she was actually worried about him, that something had happened to him. And the way she looked when he told her he was at the hospital? She looked fearful that he was the one in the hospital.

"I know you're not a big fan of talking but… do you want to talk about it?" Beth's voice broke Daryl out of his thought as he returned his stare, his eyes locking onto hers in that moment. Her eyes were remarkably blue—not that he was just now noticing that. But she wouldn't look away. It was as if her eyes were fixed on him. Usually he was the one to hold a stare until it made the other person uncomfortable. Now he felt like everything was being reversed.

Did he want to talk about it? Such an easy question and really, it should be an easy answer. Daryl never talked about his problems with anyone. He always kept to himself. He wondered if talking about his dad would actually help at all. But then he'd just feel like he was crying for attention, like he couldn't take care of it himself.

So he shook his head.

But after a moment of silence, Beth was at it again. "What happened this weekend?"

"I told ya I don't wanna talk 'bout it," Daryl grumbled. He had to bite his tongue from saying anymore. It was like she had some damn way of breaking through whatever wall he put up. No matter what defensive technique he used, Beth was there trying to knock it down.

"Do you just want me to leave?" The tone of her voice and the look on her face was that of pure innocence. She actually seemed sad asking that, like leaving was the worst option.

Daryl couldn't find it in himself to say yes to her. He didn't want her to leave. Because really, even though she put him way outside of his comfort zone, she provided him with a different kind of feeling. He felt… appreciated.

Beth must have taken his silence for a no because she took a small step forward and reached for his hand again. Daryl couldn't help but slightly twitch, fighting the urge to pull his hand away, to step back and put some more distance between them. She clasped both of her hands around his one and Jesus, why did that make him feel so uncomfortable? All she was doing was holding his hand.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. I don't want to make you." Beth dropped her left hand and grabbed up his right so that she was now holding both of his hands. "I just want you to know that I'm here for you. And I care about you. I really was worried."

"…Why?" Daryl turned his gaze from their hands up to her face.

"Why what?"

"Why are you doin' all of this?"

Beth forced a weak smile. "Why not?"

"No—" Daryl wrench his hands away as he took a step back. "Explain to me why of all the goddamn guys on the face on this earth it has to be me."

He half expected Beth to look hurt, to look taken aback by his sudden outburst. But she only stood there with a slight frown tugging at her lips.

"Explain to me why you're trying to push me away," Beth retorted. "You don't want me to leave but you don't want to talk either. I'm okay with that, but don't try to push me away, Daryl."

Daryl shook his head and walked a few paces before turning back. He muttered, "I asked you first…"

"Now who's the one sounding like they should be in high school?" Beth smirked.

"Will you just stop?" Daryl turned his attention back to her just before hearing the door to the clubhouse open. He was already facing the general direction as he shifted his stare over towards the door and sighed.

He was done trying to talk.

\- - -

Beth stood there dumbfounded as she watched Daryl take off down the hall and out of sight. If she could place a guess, she'd say that whoever just entered into the clubhouse was the one to kind of push him over the edge. Her back was to the door so she turned and glanced over to see who was there.

"Hate to break it to ya but that kid's gonna need a lot of TLC. If he's still running from you, you've got a ways to go." Gemma set her purse down on the pool table. She stole a glance down the hallway that Daryl had disappeared to and turned back to Beth. "The fact that he's running means something though. You're getting there."

"What's that supposed to mean? I don't want him to run. I want to help."

"Come on." Gemma headed for the door and outside leaving Beth to follow. They each took a seat on the picnic table, Beth feeling a little hesitant with what was to come. Nobody else was around. Daryl had stalked off further into the clubhouse and the rest of the guys were still over at the garage.

Gemma lit a cigarette and took a short drag before continuing. "It means you've gotta keep pushing but not too much."

Beth tried to make sense of what Gemma was saying as she shook her head. "I don't know what to do."

"Look, I'm not supposed to know this but I wouldn't leave Jax alone until he told me. We're the only two that know around here and if I tell you this, I'm expecting you to keep it confidential." Gemma narrowed her eyes at Beth, "You seem like a nice girl, like you know when not to go poking your nose where it don't belong."

"I am. Whatever it is, you have my word." Beth couldn't look away from Gemma as she hung onto every word she said. Gemma was about to disclose information to her that only her and Jax knew. And to Beth, that was huge. So huge that it actually made her more nervous than anything.

"Good." Gemma flicked the butt of her cigarette onto the ground as she exhaled the smoke away from Beth. "I'm just going to guess you've already witnessed the barriers he tries to put up."

Beth nodded. "He's not a big talker."

"That's because he very seldom lets people in. He's been abused. Bad. And keeping those barriers? He sees it as a way to keep himself protected if he doesn't form a lot of relationships. Or any at all." Gemma drummed her nails on the picnic table as she looked over towards the garage. "It's taken him a long time just to get used to everyone here."

Beth stared down at her feet as the word _abused_ hit her. So she had been right after all. The way Daryl always behaved around her… It wasn't necessarily her fault and his reactions weren't necessarily towards her… But he was trying to protect himself from getting hurt?

"His dad?" Beth practically gasped at the realization.

"He just went hunting over the weekend with his dad and uncle. His dad had a mild heart attack. Thinks it's his fault," Gemma explained briefly.

"But how would it be his fault? He couldn't have caused that," Beth frowned. "Just because of… being abused?"

Gemma vaguely nodded. "Never even met the guy but the bastard still has him wrapped around his finger."

Beth didn't need to know details. She wasn't sure she even wanted to know anymore than that as it was. Her eyes stung as she fought back tears. She'd never really been around anyone who had been abused before. She really didn't have a clue. It was only a guess since Daryl always seemed to act so different from everyone else that she had ever spoken to.

"You gotta promise this stays between us. Jax finds out I slipped this to you, he'll never speak to me again." Gemma got up off the table and placed her hands on her hips. "And don't let this change the way you see him. He's still the same guy."

Beth shook her head. "No, I know. But… why did you tell me?"

Gemma shrugged. "I guess I thought it might help. Hate to see you struggle so hard to break through to him. At least an explanation as to why he is the way he is might help you understand."

"Yeah, it does. Thanks." Beth forced a weak smile. She noticed Gemma had turned her attention towards the door to the clubhouse with a smile before Beth even realized Daryl was standing there. For a moment it felt like her heart stopped, fearing that he overheard them talking. But he must have just walked outside because Gemma didn't seem unnerved in the slightest.

"Hey, sweetheart. You doin' okay?" Gemma walked towards him as he provided her with a nod. She gently placed a hand on the side of his face as she kissed his cheek. Beth could see him visible flinch at her touch but he seemed okay overall. Gemma gave his shoulder a squeeze and then headed back inside.

Once Daryl met Beth's stare, she smiled. She was glad Gemma trusted her enough to tell her everything. And really, she was glad Daryl seemed to be fairly comfortable around the people of Teller-Morrow. Gemma seemed to be playing the motherly role in Daryl's life and he definitely seemed to need that.

Daryl sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry."

"No need to be sorry." Beth patted the vacant spot beside her. "This is my last week of school you know."

"Yeah?" Daryl sat down next to her. He fiddled with the torn fabric of his jeans around his knee.

"Yeah. And my birthday is next week. I'll be eighteen."

"You expectin' a gift?" Daryl turned his head to look at her and she caught the smirk on his face. It made her feel good.

"Maybe." Beth leaned into him and wrapped an arm around his back. "Just don't go disappearing on me again."

He didn't say anything in response but Beth felt his arm snake around her waist, pulling her closer. It may not have been a big deal to anyone else but after learning what Gemma knew about Daryl, it meant the world to Beth.


	25. Chapter 25

When it came time for Beth to leave, she was able to steal a quick kiss on the cheek which ended up leading to a kiss on the lips. She didn't want to push it but Daryl ended up being the one to gently pull her back and plant his lips to hers. It only made her realize that much more that she couldn't wait until summer. She wouldn't have to worry about school and she could spend as much time with Daryl that she wanted—without going overboard of course.

With a vague idea of what Daryl had been through in his life, she knew she was going to do everything she could to change the way he thought about himself. She'd at least make him feel worthy. He deserved that much and it was something she could give him.

Three more days and she was free. Just a few more finals and summer would be there. She would go to graduation for Shawn and Jesse once the weekend rolled around and then she would be eighteen next week. She couldn't believe how fast time seemed to be flying. And finally, things were going okay.

Shawn had backed off a bit. He was no longer threatening to do anything to jeopardize Daryl, or Jesse for that matter. Her parents weren't too happy but she figured they'd come around eventually. If Shawn could, they could. Maggie didn't have much to say on the topic other than she was still baffled by Beth's behavior. Beth almost thought about introducing Maggie to some of the guys at Teller-Morrow because she was certain Maggie would have to find at least one of them attractive and she would cave.

Jesse was back in school after skipping on Monday. He made up whatever finals he had missed and Haley kept him in line. Haley was actually spending quite a bit of time with him, trying to help him get clean and put his entire drug problem behind him: no more using and no more "cooking" or selling. It was a work in progress but by the sounds of it, she was doing okay with it so far.

Just a few more days and she would be free…

\- - -

Jax allowed Daryl to actually come back to work the following day and he treated it just the same as any other. He did his best to push all thoughts of his dad and his condition from his mind and focused more on the task at hand. The guys kept the mood fairly light around the garage, which wasn't anything different, but Daryl was thankful for it.

He let his mind wander a bit while he worked on changing the oil in some Ford Escort and naturally, after having seen her yesterday, his thoughts lead to Beth. He couldn't believe how calm she had remained. And she didn't just up and leave when he did. She waited for him to come back around. But her telling him that her birthday was next week and the fact that she was going to be eighteen? He had no clue what to do with that information. Was he supposed to do something special? Was he supposed to get her a gift? He had absolutely no idea.

"Looks like you got a visitor." Opie stepped into Daryl's peripheral to alert his attention and nodded his head out towards the parking lot. Daryl looked for himself and he swore he couldn't be more confused.

"…I'll be right back." Daryl walked out towards the red Toyota and met Jesse halfway before he could even really get that close to the garage. "What're you doin' here?"

Jesse rubbed the back of his neck with both hands and sighed. "I know I'm probably the last person you wanna see and all but I had a question and I didn't know how else to reach you."

"A question?" Daryl furrowed his brows. What did Jesse Pinkman have to ask that concerned him?

"Long story short, I found some old pictures when I was going through some things and I, uh…" Jesse slightly kicked at the ground, staring down at his feet as he pulled a bent up photograph from his back pocket and handed it to Daryl. "You find people. That's what you do, right? You track people down and shit? 'Cause you guys got my address somehow and I know you do more than just work on cars."

Daryl put his hand up to silence Jesse from saying anymore while he glanced down at the picture in his hand. "What does this have to do with…" He stopped. He stared down at the picture and got a really good look before switching his gaze to Jesse, to the picture, and back again. "Where did you get this?"

"Like I said, I just found it while I was going through some things. I was just curious as to why there were a handful of pictures of this same guy I've never seen before in my life just sitting in boxes in the basement." Jesse shoved his hands in his pockets. "I feel like I should know him but I don't."

Daryl felt like he couldn't register what he was looking at. The picture was old and bent up but he could see right there clear as day that the man in the photograph looked eerily similar to a much younger version of his uncle, or rather half-uncle. He had the same dark blonde hair that Jesse had standing before him and he looked to be about in his early thirties if Daryl could place a guess. And he was holding an infant in his arms to which he guessed must have been Jesse.

"Look, just… never mind. I just thought—"

Daryl slapped the picture against Jesse's chest and pulled his truck keys from his pocket. "Come on." He had already started heading for his truck and realized Jesse stayed put, staring back at him.

"Wait, where are you going?" Jesse looked hesitant.

"Just get in the damn truck."

\- - -

The drive couldn't have felt any more awkward with Jesse sitting on the passenger side. Neither of the two had said a word. Jesse was fiddling around with a pack of cigarettes in his hands. Daryl could see him flicking the pack opened and closed numerous times from the corner of his eye before the kid let out an exaggerated sigh and pressed his forehead to the window.

It was when Jesse started tapping his fingers on the door panel that Daryl brought the truck to a stop at a red light and stared at him through narrowed eyes, half glaring. It took a moment but Jesse could feel Daryl's eyes on him and he slowly turned to look back before he rested his hands in his lap again.

A few minutes passed before Jesse cleared his throat. "You mind if I smoke?"

"Will it make you any less irritating?" Daryl shot back as he chewed on the side of his thumb.

"I'd be less irritating if I had a clue where in the hell you're taking me…" Jesse muttered as he slid a cigarette out from his pack and lit it, rolling the window down.

"You'll find out soon enough."

It was about ten minutes later when Daryl brought his truck to a halt and parked by the curb outside of a white ranch home. He shut the engine off, pulled the keys from the ignition, and snatched the picture from out of Jesse's grip all before getting out of his truck and heading for the front door. He could hear Jesse clambered out of the vehicle after him and Daryl didn't waste any time in bothering to knock.

The door was unlocked as Daryl invited himself in, Jesse only following a few steps inside and shut the door behind him.

"Daryl? What's goin' on?" Jess was just walking toward the door and froze when he saw that Daryl hadn't come alone.

Daryl slapped the picture against his chest. "You tell me." He stood back a bit and crossed his arms, waiting for Jess to start explaining. And he watched as Jess' face lit up in recognition as he glanced from the photograph to the kid standing by the door.

Jess shook his head and lowered the picture. "I don't understand."

"Well, start explainin' and maybe between the three of us we can come up with somethin'." Daryl dropped his arms back down at his sides, the situation becoming uncomfortable. "You had a kid?"

Jesse stepped forward now with his hands raised. "Whoa, whoa. What are you saying? Are you saying this guy is—this guy's my dad?"

The room fell silent as Daryl could see the gears turning in his uncle's head; he was thinking it all through.

"But that's not possible?" Jesse shook his head. "No, my parents are back home and I have a little brother—what's going on?"

"Jess," Daryl raised his voice, becoming impatient.

"I—I didn't know…" Jess replied.

"Bullshit. You tellin' me you had a kid—that Jesse is your kid—and you just abandoned him?"

"It wasn't like that, Daryl."

"Then start fuckin' talking!" Daryl fumed.

Jesse backed up against a wall and ran his hands through his hair. Daryl hadn't really thought it through but maybe he shouldn't have brought Jesse. The kid had no idea what was going on, just the same as Daryl. But if Jess really was his dad, Jesse's whole life had practically been a lie. And he didn't even want to think about the fact that that meant they were all related in some way, shape, or form…

"Laura left me and took Jesse with her. I had no say in anything," Jess briefly explained. "Wasn't exactly the brightest bulb in the box back then—not that I am now, either."

Daryl pinched the bridge of his nose. Jess had been a lot closer to Will when they were younger and if Daryl could place a guess, Jess was just as bad as his dad was with drugs and alcohol. But the fact that his uncle had a kid and didn't do shit about it just pissed him off. It was like Jess didn't even care.

"I'm just gonna… go sit outside." Jesse pointed at the front door, glancing between the two, and headed outside while shutting the door behind him.

"How the hell do you know him anyway?"

"What difference does it make?" Daryl retorted. "Don't even bother tryin' to make things right." He turned back around and left, slamming the door behind him. Sometimes he felt like the more he learned about his family, the more he hated them. Jess was the one person he could tolerate of everyone and now it'd be a while before Daryl could bring himself to talk to him.

Jesse was leaning against the passenger side of Daryl's truck, his feet balanced on the curb with a cigarette in hand. He looked up to see Daryl heading his way and got into the truck without a word.

And once Daryl had gotten into the truck himself and started driving, he realized Jesse was completely out of it. The kid sat there without hardly moving—he wasn't tapping his fingers on the door panel, he wasn't fidgeting, he wasn't trying to start a conversation—nothing. It almost drove Daryl crazier than how Jesse was behaving on the way there. He almost preferred Jesse pestering him.

"Hey…" Daryl glanced over at Jesse. "Sorry 'bout all of that. I just didn't think…"

"Don't worry about it. Guess I had it coming," Jesse mumbled. He sat up straight, stretching out his spine. "But are we seriously related? That guy back there—he's really… he's really my dad?"

Daryl sighed. "Yeah… Welcome to the family."

\- - -

Upon returning to TM, Daryl parked his truck back in the same spot before they both exited the vehicle. Jesse stayed fairly close by, looking as if he wanted to say something. Daryl gave him a minute or two before he started to walk back towards the garage.

"Wait—" Jesse called out. Daryl stopped and turned back to face him. "I just wanted to say thanks, I guess. For… connecting the dots."

"Just go home."

"I can't," Jesse muttered.

Daryl sighed. "If I were you I'd just try and forget about it." It was a shot in the dark, only obvious that the information they had both just learned wasn't something to be forgotten.

"No, I mean I can't. Physically." Jesse ran a hand through his hair. "My mom kicked me out. She's selling my aunt's place since I'm graduating."

"What?" Daryl furrowed his brow. "What's your aunt's place have to do with anything?"

"I lived with my aunt for a couple years when my mom kicked me out. I was her primary caregiver when she was diagnosed with cancer. And now it's just me and my mom doesn't want me around, okay?" Jesse mumbled, "Said I need to learn to grow up…"

"You don't have anywhere to go?" Daryl eased up a bit on the kid. And damn if he really didn't remind him of himself now. Even if he had problems with drugs, he still kind of felt sorry for him; his mom disowning him and finding out about his real dad—the fact that his real dad did nothing to try and keep him in his life.

Jesse shook his head. "I don't really have any other family. And I don't have any friends I could really ask that would be alright with it… And I'm broke…"

Daryl rubbed his face and tried to talk himself out of it. Jesse wasn't his problem, even if it turned out that they were related. Damn, they were related… He couldn't just turn his back on him, could he?

"You askin' to move in with me or somethin'?"

"I couldn't ask that of you." Jesse shoved his hands in his pockets and slightly kicked at the ground.

Daryl placed his hands on his hips and stared down at the ground. "How long we talkin'?"

"Talking what?"

"Say you… move in with me for a while. How long?" Daryl looked up to try and read Jesse's face. He seemed to light up ever so slightly.

"Just—Just temporarily or something. I'll find a job and get some money. Then I can be out of your hair."

"You know anything about cars?" Daryl crossed his arms.

Jesse looked between Daryl and the garage. "Are you serious? You could get me a job here?"

"It's worth a shot, ain't it? I'll work on it." Daryl paused before continuing, "If you're gonna live with me for a while and you're gonna be 'round here, first things first. You gotta get rid of the crank."

"Already on it. Beth and her friend Haley have been helping me. Mostly Haley right now," Jesse admitted.

Daryl nodded. "Good."

Jesse managed a weak smile. "Thanks, cousin."

" _Half_ cousin…" Daryl muttered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea of having Jesse Pinkman being Jess' son was the idea of BeingLolaStar on fanfiction. Mad props to her for making it my headcanon. :)


	26. Chapter 26

School was finally out for the summer and Beth had kept herself busy with her family up until that Sunday when graduation rolled around. She went with her parents, Maggie, and Haley for Shawn and Jesse. Sitting in the large gymnasium all crowded together on bleachers wasn't the most ideal way to spend a couple hours but she wanted to be there to support her half-brother and friend.

The thought of Daryl coming along crossed Beth's mind but she really couldn't picture dragging him to a high school graduation. Maybe she was just eager to have him meet everyone and they could make things official or something. She wanted her parents and siblings to meet Daryl and get to know him. They would change their mind about him if they were given that chance.

Haley leaned over towards Beth while the dean of the school droned on about accomplishments. "Look how cute Jesse looks wearing a cap and gown." She partially giggled while she tried to point him out among all of the students.

Beth smiled. "How are things going with you two?"

"Good. He's been a little gloomy these past couple days or so but I've been trying to keep him in good spirits," Haley explained.

Since Beth had been busy with her family, she had learned from Haley through Jesse that Jesse was actually related to Daryl. Nobody believed him at first but Jesse tried to explain what he understood. He wasn't exactly in the best of moods figuring out that information and Beth could understand why. It had to be hard finding that out, that all this time he never even knew his real dad when he thought he did. It had Beth questioning that entire family. She was just glad Haley was keeping him sane.

"You know…" Haley paused. "Whenever you first started talking to Jesse, I thought it was crazy and I didn't want anything to do with that whole situation. But now, it's just so different… I kinda really like the guy."

"I could tell," Beth confessed. "You two make a cute couple."

"You think so?" Haley grinned. "I still can't believe he's related to Daryl. That's crazy. We're dating guys from the same family. Well, almost dating. Nothing is official."

Haley's words hit Beth as the term "dating" clicked in her mind. She technically wasn't dating Daryl, was she? Or maybe she was? Nothing was official. Heck, she didn't even have his phone number. And it wasn't like she had ever called Daryl her boyfriend. But it had a nice ring to it.

Daryl was still hers regardless.

"I can't wait for this all to be over completely. Jesse and I are gonna go out for a bit since we can't really crash at his place and my house is kinda off limits."

"Just another hour or two and you'll be free. Hang in there," Beth laughed. "I can't even picture Daryl and Jesse living together."

"Right?" Haley smirked.

\- - -

After graduation was over, Beth gave Haley and Jesse a hug before they took off. She headed home with her family in order to celebrate. Any of the tension that had been lingering in their home due to Beth being with Daryl seemed to melt away. It was like everything had just been forgotten, if only for one day.

Beth decided to make a cake with Maggie. They preferred to make one rather than buy one, and no graduation "party" was complete without a little bit of cake. Beth was just glad Maggie liked the decision because she missed hanging out with her.

"Shoot—grab the eggs. I totally forgot about them." Beth skimmed over the recipe while she started to lightly stir the batter. Maggie read over Beth's shoulder and grabbed the eggs, cracking them and adding them to the bowl before Beth started the mixer out on low.

Once the batter was stirred, Maggie slid the pan over and shook it to evenly distribute the chocolate substance while Beth poured. As soon as Beth set the bowl down Maggie stuck her finger in it and scooped up some of the batter off the edge and onto her finger, licking it.

"You're not supposed to eat raw batter. It could make you sick," Beth warned.

"It hasn't stopped me yet." Maggie teased. She dipped her finger back into the bowl and wiped the chocolate across Beth's nose, both of the sisters giggling. "Besides, it's the best part."

Beth ran her finger along the edge of the bowl herself now before she managed to swipe some of the batter across Maggie's cheek in return. She laughed as she dipped her finger back in and licked it. "Yeah, you're right."

Hershel passed by the kitchen with a smile and a hearty chuckle seeing his daughters getting along like they were. He didn't stop to ask how things were going, he just kept walking until he joined Annette, Shawn, Otis, Patricia, and a few relatives that came over for the evening.

Maggie grabbed a paper towel and ran it under the faucet to get it damp. She wiped the chocolate mess from off her face and handed the damp paper towel to Beth. "Truce," she smiled. "Can I ask you something without you getting mad at me?"

Beth wiped her face clean and tossed the paper towel in the garbage. "Yeah?" She stared back at her sister, confused.

"Everything is seriously going okay with this Daryl guy and you're not just brainwashed?" Maggie leaned against the counter.

Beth rolled her eyes and sighed. "I'm not brainwashed."

"But everything is going okay? He hasn't done anything…?"

"No—" Beth shook her head. "No, nothing like that. He's nothing like how you guys keep making him out to be. Honestly."

Maggie crossed her arms. "You have to remember the only thing I saw was some older guy kissing you in front of me and Shawn like he was trying to make a point. I'm just trying to protect you and I don't want anything to happen."

"Everything's fine. I promise," Beth reassured her. "I actually want you guys to meet him. And well, him to meet you guys. I just don't know how to really do that yet."

"The day you bring Daryl Dixon to this house will be the day dad has a heart attack." A small smirk passed Maggie's lips, "Hopefully he's a little warmed up from my past experiences."

Beth vaguely recalled Maggie's previous boyfriend. He was older and he certainly didn't seem like her type—much similar to how Daryl and Beth were. Maybe not quite as drastic but close enough. And Beth only hoped that Maggie was right.

"Hey, you two gonna hide out in the kitchen all day or what?" Shawn stepped into the room and folded his arms across his chest.

"We're coming. Hold your horses." Maggie stuck the pan in the oven and set the timer. She smiled at Beth just before walking over to Shawn and squeezing him into a hug. "Congrats, graduate. Feel old yet?"

Shawn laughed while returning the embrace. "So old."

"It'll sink in. Give it a few days." Maggie walked out and joined everyone in the dining room.

Beth and Shawn met each other's stare and smiled. She gave him a hug as well before she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Congrats."

\- - -

It was going on seven o'clock by the time Daryl saw Jesse emerge from the staircase and walk down the balcony towards him. Daryl put his cigarette out on the railing and threw it into the ashtray by his feet.

"Hey," Jesse greeted him, stopping a few feet away and leaning against the railing of the balcony. "I almost didn't think you'd be here."

Daryl stared out toward the empty street. "Nah… Figured you'd be back sooner. So how'd everything go?"

"Good," Jesse nodded. "Went out with Haley for a while. I guess I'm all officially graduated and everything."

Daryl patted Jesse on the shoulder. "Congrats on bein' the first one in the family to graduate high school." He turned around and entered into his apartment as Jesse followed.

"I'm the first one to graduate in the family?—you didn't graduate?" Jesse shut the door behind him and locked it since it was starting to get late.

Daryl shook his head. "Wasn't really my thing."

"Wasn't really mine either. I wanted to drop out. Almost did a couple times. And then Beth started talking to me and well… she helped."

"Yeah… How'd you two meet?" Daryl kicked his boots off and sat down on the couch.

"We had chemistry together. She just started talking to me one day up and out of the blue about, well… you." Jesse kicked his shoes off as well and plopped down on the loveseat adjacent to the couch.

Daryl furrowed his brow. "She started talkin' to you because of me? Is this when the whole stalkin' thing happened?"

Jesse forced a laugh. "Yeah, something like that. I'd tell her what I knew about you in exchange for her helping me out with chemistry."

"And what exactly do you know about me?" Daryl raised an eyebrow.

"Nothing—" Jesse shook his head. "I told her that you had a brother and that's pretty much it. I didn't really know anything about you. Still don't really. Other than the fact that we're related now." A faint smirk crossed Jesse's lips as Daryl groaned.

"God must really hate me." Daryl mumbled half jokingly. The look on Jesse's face only made him laugh.

"Uh, ouch? We're in the same boat here. Family sucks." Jesse got up off the loveseat and walked into the kitchen.

Daryl couldn't argue with that statement and yet no matter how much he despised his family, he still had their backs when shit hit the fan. He tried to help Merle when he could, he usually stayed in touch with Jess, and he tried to remain at least somewhat neutral with his dad—though he hadn't seen him since the whole hospital incident. He just figured it was best to hang back.

Now with Jesse being added into the equation and reminding him of himself around that age, he was pretty well determined to keep him from sinking into the deep end.

"You don't have shit for food in this place, man." Jesse complained from the kitchen. He stepped around the corner and entered back into the little living room area.

"So sue me. Go buy some." Daryl rubbed his eye. "I'm not usually home and I had no idea that I was gonna be livin' with my half-cousin. You're welcome, by the way."

"Hey, I thanked you. I'd be out on the street if you hadn't let me come stay with you for a while." Jesse pulled his car keys from his pocket. "So you're not gonna disappear on me if I leave to go get some food? Because I don't have a key to get back in otherwise."

"Yeah, yeah… I'll be here." Daryl waved his hand dismissively toward the door. He only had two keys in total. Scout still had his spare key from when Merle had to stay for a while if things got out of control or if he needed her to get rid of anything Merle could possibly stash away. And there was no way in hell he was going to hand over his key.

Jesse threw his shoes back on and headed out the door.

Daryl slouched down on the couch and laid his head back, digging the heels of his palms into his eyes. Beth came back to his mind and he still felt conflicted with that whole situation. She was going to be eighteen really soon and he had no clue what that really meant. Maybe it wasn't a big deal. Maybe it would just keep Shane and Rick at bay with her technically being a legal adult. Maybe he was just thinking too much into it. If anything, it'd make him feel better with her being termed a legal adult.

It still didn't solve the problem of what in the hell he was supposed to do. He thought about asking Jax, maybe Jesse, and hell, he'd even thought about asking Opie. But he figured it was bad enough that he was clueless without having to ask someone for help.

About thirty minutes passed since Jesse left and returned. Daryl hadn't locked the door back so Jesse just entered into the small apartment and shut the door behind him with a grin, his hands full.

Daryl glanced over at him. "Shopping for food turned into gettin' pizza?"

"Yeah, well… I didn't feel like actually shopping and there's never not a good time for pizza." Jesse walked to the kitchen and set the pizza box down on the counter. Daryl followed and leaned against the wall. "That Asian guy ought to know me by now."

"Asian guy?" Daryl raised an eyebrow.

"He works at the—" Jesse pointed at the pizza box and sighed. "Never mind…"

It had only been a couple days since Jesse kind of moved in but so far things weren't too bad. Sure the kid could get on Daryl's nerves—just about everyone did at some point. But it wasn't too bad having someone around.


	27. Chapter 27

When the next day rolled around, Beth took that as her opportunity to see Daryl again. It had been a few days since she saw him last and even though she knew he'd be working, she didn't mind. She actually kind of liked hanging around TM. It was a change of scenery, a place where she could just sort of escape for a while. Her junior year of high school was finally over and she didn't have a worry in the world.

Beth parked her car and caught a glimpse of Daryl over in the garage. She smiled and provided a little wave as he smiled in return. She knew not to walk over and bother him right now so she headed over to the clubhouse. She figured she'd just hang out there and wait for Daryl to get off work.

After entering the clubhouse, Beth realized she was alone. Chucky wasn't there and it was dead silent. She wasn't sure what to think. There was a small part of her that wanted to walk around the place and see what she could find. It wasn't like she had anything better to do. And she wasn't going to just go sticking her nose into something, digging through anything.

The first thing Beth took notice of was the wall of pictures. Not just ordinary pictures either, but pictures of what seemed to be everyone there at TM having been arrested at one point in time. Mug shots. And right above all the pictures it had the word "SAMCRO". Of course Beth had no clue what that meant but she wasn't sure why mug shots would be something to show off. It was a little shocking and she wasn't sure how she hadn't noticed them before. Probably too nervous to really get a good look around when she was with Gemma.

Beth poked her head around the corner from there and found a decent sized room with a large engraved table, chairs set up all around it. Once she got closer she stared in awe at the table and ran her fingers over the carved out grim reaper with a scythe. It seemed to be some sort of logo to this whole SAMCRO thing.

"I guess that old thing is pretty intriguing the first time you see it."

Beth jumped and turned to face Gemma standing in the doorway. She didn't seem angry that Beth had started wandering around the clubhouse so she forced a smile. "Yeah, I've never seen anything like it. It's really cool." She stepped out of the room and stood next to Gemma. "Sorry, I wasn't trying to snoop around or anything. Nobody was here and I—"

"It's alright." Gemma slightly looked her over before looking her back in the eyes. "Saw your car, figured you'd be in here." She walked over and sat down at the bar while Beth followed, taking the seat next to her.

"So things must be going okay since you're back," Gemma stated.

Beth nodded. "Well, I haven't seen him since I saw you last but yeah. Things are going okay. I don't want to be too overbearing but I have missed him…" Beth felt her face flush at her admitting that to Gemma but she didn't seem to mind.

Gemma smiled. "I don't know the whole story of how you two met but I'm glad you did. Seems like the two of you make a good pair."

Beth slightly fidgeted in her seat. "Has he ever said anything about me?"

"Nothing that I know of but don't take that personally. He's not exactly an open book."

"And you think everything seems okay then? I mean, you know him better than me."

"Has anyone ever told you that you worry too much?" Gemma pushed her bangs to the side, her lips twisting into a smirk. "Just keep doin' whatever you're doin' and be yourself… If only Jax could find a girl like you."

"I thought Jax was with Tara? She seemed nice to me."

"You don't know the half of it." Gemma narrowed her eyes. "That bitch has done nothing but try and tear this family apart since her and Jax dated in high school. She might seem nice but that's just her cover up. All this talk with her moving back to Chicago is screwing with Jax's head."

"I'm sure everything will work out," Beth tried. She didn't want to say anymore about Tara or Jax, and she found it kind of ironic that Gemma said Tara playing nice was a cover up. It sounded a lot like Gemma was also the type to play nice as a cover up. And Beth was very thankful to have somehow made it to Gemma's good side.

"I suppose. Things are almost working backwards now because Daryl is keeping Jax grounded when it's usually the other way around. So I'm glad you're here to balance things out."

Beth smiled as her eyes quickly flitted over to the pictures on the wall before looking back at Gemma. "One more question, not to change the subject or anything… But why do you guys have a wall of mug shots?"

"We do more than just service cars, sweetie."

\- - -

Gemma left Beth alone in the clubhouse once more while she tried to collect her thoughts before Daryl would come find her. Gemma hadn't said much about Daryl other than he had been helping Jax and Beth took that as a sign that things were going okay for him.

But now that iffy feeling had returned the more she tried to think about what kind of people worked there. She was apparently surrounded by criminals—and didn't that include Daryl if he worked there with them? Then again, Daryl seemed absolutely harmless.

Well, technically.

Beth was sitting with her back to the bar when she heard the door to the clubhouse open. She glanced over to see Daryl emerge from the short hallway that led into the main area and smiled. "Hey, how was your day?"

"Decent. Can't complain." Daryl sat across from her, on the pool table. "I see you still haven't given up."

"I thought I already told you, I'm not going anywhere. Are you trying to get rid of me, Daryl Dixon?" Beth folded her arms defensively.

"Nah, I guess you're a keeper." Daryl smirked.

"Right back at ya." Beth hopped down from the barstool and walked over towards Daryl. "You know, I've never played pool before. I'm not sure I'd even know how to."

"Really?" Daryl raised an eyebrow. "It's a simple game. Used to play it with Merle at different bars while he tried to hustle people."

"Were you any good?" Beth picked up one of the balls and rolled it across the table, sinking it into a pocket.

Daryl shrugged. "Didn't leave empty-handed."

"Any other 'criminal offenses'?" Beth kept her tone light though her curiosity was getting to her.

"Blackjack with Happy. Used to count cards. He has the best poker face I've ever seen," Daryl admitted with a chuckle.

"Happy?" Beth questioned.

"Yeah, you've never met him. He kinda comes and goes." Daryl cleared his throat and changed the topic, "So no more school, huh?"

Beth nodded. "Not until the fall. And I turn eighteen on Wednesday."

Daryl scratched the back of his neck. "About that…" He hopped down off of the pool table. "…What am I supposed to do?"

Beth stifled her laugh upon seeing the confused look on Daryl's face. It occurred to her then that he probably never faced a situation like that before, worrying over someone's birthday. If he had never really been in a relationship before it was all new to him because guys never expected a gift from another guy. It was like some sort of bro code.

"You don't have to do anything," Beth encouraged. She walked over to him to where they were practically toe to toe and looked him in the eyes. "I just want to be with you and I want you to be happy." She cautiously wrapped her arms around him in a hug while resting her head against his chest.

"That's it?" Daryl didn't reciprocate the embrace.

"Of course. Why should you have to worry about doing anything for me getting older?" Beth backed up and smiled. "There is one thing though…"

"And what's that?"

"A way to contact you would be nice." Beth giggled. "I still don't have your phone number."

Daryl rolled his eyes. "My phone number, right…" He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and raised an eyebrow at her. "What's yours?"

Beth read her number aloud as Daryl put in the digits and hit send. He let Beth's phone go off for a couple rings before hanging up.

"There. You have my number and I have yours. Consider it an early birthday gift."

Beth laughed. "Best birthday gift ever." She slid her phone back into her own pocket not wanting to look too eager. His number would still be on the missed calls list that she could program later.

Daryl shook his head with a smirk. "Glad I could make ya happy. Over a damn phone number…" He scratched his chin in thought. "I actually gotta get back. I'm supposed to help the guys out with something that kinda involves me leavin' here so…"

"Okay," Beth nodded. She took that as her cue that she should probably leave. "I'll just see you Wednesday then?"

"You can count on it."

Beth smiled once again and hugged him. He returned the embrace this time and she even got another kiss before parting ways, giving her butterflies. She could only hope that was her good-bye every time.


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how about that season 4 trailer?! I'm even more impatient for October now!   
> And I just found out that Norman Reedus and Aaron Paul (aka Daryl Dixon and Jesse Pinkman for those who don't know) have a picture together after SDCC! My poor little fangirl heart, haha. :D

When Beth's birthday finally rolled around, she knew she would be spending a lot of the day with her family. And she had no problem with that. It did however mean that she'd have to wait to see Daryl. She received a text from both Haley and Jesse wishing her a happy birthday that morning. Then after spending some time with her parents and Shawn, she went out to lunch with Maggie.

"So everything's still going okay? With…Daryl?" Maggie questioned. She spun her straw around in her drink, the ice clinking against the side of the glass. They had their usual window seat in the little local diner. Going out to eat lunch with Maggie on her birthday had become a ritual after having claimed that seat at that diner for the past four years.

Beth smiled at her sister's curiosity. "Yeah, everything's fine."

"Well, you've been leavin' me in the dark about this guy. I haven't really had the chance to meet him and you don't talk to me about him like you did with Jimmy." Maggie took a sip of her drink before setting it back down on the folded napkin.

Beth cringed. "Can we please not talk about Jimmy?" She continued, "I'm not really sure what to say. I'm going to see him later. I was thinking about maybe seeing if I could spend the night with him… He asked me what he's supposed to do for my birthday and I don't know, it's cute. And we finally have each other's number."

"Spending the night?" Maggie raised an eyebrow.

"How did I know that would be the one thing you'd pick up on out of all of that?" Beth pulled her drink closer to her and played around with the straw before taking a sip.

"You can't tell me you wouldn't be the same way if the roles were reversed and you were the older sister." Maggie rested her elbow on the table and pointed at Beth. "Besides, I recall you being very defensive when I was away at college. Remember?"

Beth's face flushed at the recollection of the time she had thrown Maggie's birth control pills into their pond because she didn't want Maggie dating boys or having sex. Funny how different she felt now that she had met Daryl.

"That was forever ago." Beth tried to defend her reasoning.

"I don't consider last year forever ago." Maggie picked up a French fry from her plate and threw it at Beth from across the table. Beth's jaw dropped at her throwing food in a public place and Maggie tried not to laugh. "Maybe I should go toss _you_ in a pond." She threw another fry.

"Maggie, _stop_ …" Beth bit her lip. The shit-eating grin on Maggie's face and the fact that she was okay with everything—Beth couldn't help but giggle and retaliate. She grabbed a fry from off her own plate and threw it at her sister.

They each threw a couple more fries at one another before bursting into a fit of laughter, both trying to cover their faces. Once they were able to regain control of themselves they noticed almost every set of eyes in that diner were staring at them with some sort of a scowl.

"Maybe we should just go?" Beth lowered her voice.

Maggie glanced around the diner one last time before nodding in agreement. She took care of the bill once the waitress swung back around. She was a bit of an older woman, probably near her forties, and quiet as a mouse. Of all the people in the diner, she seemed to be the only one who still wore a small smile on her face, her blue eyes shining. Maggie muttered a quick apology and left a tip before the sisters hightailed it out of there.

Maggie threw her arm around Beth and squeezed her into a partial hug as they walked side by side back to their dad's old Suburban. "I guess it's a good thing we don't come here too often, huh?"

Beth stifled a laugh. "Probably."

Beth hadn't bothered with taking her purse since Maggie paid for them so she had her phone shoved into her front pocket. And it was at that moment that it started to vibrate since she turned the ringer off. She immediately stopped walking and Maggie froze right alongside her as she dug her phone out of her pocket, both of them staring at the caller ID.

"Hi, Daryl." Beth answered. She tried to duck out from under Maggie's arm but Maggie pulled her back, leaning in an attempt to eavesdrop. Beth mouthed _stop_ and Maggie only grinned that much more.

"Hey… Just figured I'd call an' say happy birthday." There was a sudden static followed by what sounded like a harsh whisper and a smack. Beth could only smile trying to picture what was going on, assuming he was at Teller-Morrow.

"Thanks." Beth eyed Maggie who was still leaning in. "Everything going okay over there?"

"Yeah, peachy. You?"

"I'm good. So I was thinking about coming to see you here shortly. I just had lunch with my sister and I've been around my family all morning. I don't want them to get too sick of me or anything ya know." Beth joked.

"Nah, not possible to get sick of ya. But uh, I'm at TM so I guess whenever you get here I'll see you then?"

Maggie took her arm back and shook her finger at Beth's phone. "Good answer on his behalf."

Beth lightly kicked at Maggie and walked a couple steps away before answering. "Yeah. I'll see you then." She hung up after that and gave Maggie a playful shove, laughing. "You are such a— _ugh_! I don't know!"

"Love you too, Bethy." Maggie hugged her. "Just be safe. And I hope you had a great day so far."

"Of course." Beth hugged her back. "I wouldn't want it any other way."

\- - -

Maggie had driven them back home and as soon as they were there, Beth hopped into the Sable and headed for Teller-Morrow. She told Maggie to tell their parents that she had her phone if they needed her and she'd be back some time tomorrow, if not earlier. Maggie had warned her once again to be safe before she had officially left.

Beth parked her car and immediately started walking over toward the garage. She smiled once she saw Daryl and Jax. And then she noticed Jesse and Haley—and why were they there?

"Hey," Jax smiled once Beth joined them. "Happy birthday."

"Thanks." Beth turned to Jesse and Haley momentarily, her brow furrowed. "What are you guys…?"

"Jesse works here. Daryl got him a job," Haley piped up. "Well, he's kind of 'in training'." She quoted with her fingers before leaning into Jesse and wrapping her arms around him.

Jesse shrugged. "What she said."

Beth grinned. That only meant that Jesse would be around more, which would mean Haley would be around more… Things couldn't work any much better than that.

Beth disregarded everything at that moment though and squeezed Daryl in a hug. Having spent time goofing around with Maggie and now being surrounded by all of her friends, people she had grown to love, she felt like she couldn't be happier. Like she was on cloud nine.

She tilted her head up and stole a quick kiss from Daryl. He whispered "happy birthday" near her ear so that only she could hear it, causing her to squeeze him tighter in a hug.

"So what exactly was going on when you called me?" Beth took a step back to look up at Daryl. "It kinda sounded like someone was beating someone up."

Daryl and Jax exchanged glances, Daryl slightly narrowing his eyes at him while Jax laughed. "Shithead here kept pesterin' me."

Beth bit her lip to hold back a laugh herself. That would have been something to see. "My sister was doing the same to me… She was trying to eavesdrop."

"Great minds think alike," Jax commented, tapping his temple.

"Aye! Birthday girl's here!"

Beth slowly turned toward the voice, startled that someone was calling out to her. She vaguely recognized him from that day at the bar. The guy with the Irish-like accent and fairly long graying hair. And following behind him was the other guy that had been at the bar that same day. The one with the black curly hair.

The first man wrapped Beth in an unexpected hug and patted her on the back a little harder than she thought necessary but it was all in good nature. He stepped back as Beth turned to Daryl for an explanation.

"It's Chibs." Daryl smirked. "I got nothin'."

"Yeah, and ya never introduced her to the family." Chibs turned to Beth. "You're with him, ya get us all. We're a packaged deal."

Beth smiled. "Yeah?"

"Oh yeah." The other man piped in. He extended his hand as Beth took it. "Tig. Pleasure to meet you." He brought Beth's hand up and kissed it before letting go.

"You too." Beth resumed her position next to Daryl. She caught a glimpse of him rolling his eyes at Tig.

"Leave that poor girl alone." Gemma stepped out of the office and headed over to the populating circle. "The last thing she needs is you two scaring her off." Gemma placed her hands on her hips, "Yeah, I'm talkin' about you, Tiggy."

"C'mon." Chibs took Gemma's advice and waved Tig along. He patted Gemma on the arm in passing as the two men disappeared back into the garage.

"We'll give you guys some space." Haley smiled and grabbed Jesse's hand, pulling him along with her.

"Well? What are you two waitin' on?" Gemma glanced back and forth between Beth and Daryl. "Get the hell out of here."

Daryl chuckled at Gemma's brashness. "Never a dull moment with you."

Gemma smirked. "I'm all sorts of fun." She leaned in and kissed Daryl on the cheek before turning her attention to Beth. "Happy birthday. Now seriously, get the hell out of here. Both of you."

Beth nodded her head in thanks and looked to Daryl, unsure if Gemma was truly joking or not because her tone was hard to read. She took her for the serious kind of joker.

"Um… Your place?" Beth asked.

"Sure." Daryl cleared his throat and started towards the row of motorcycles. "You uh, ever been on a bike?"

They came to a halt by Daryl's motorcycle and Beth stared at it like she had never seen one before. "I…can't say that I have."

"…You trust me?" His eyes locked onto hers. "Don't have to if ya don't wanna."

"I trust you." Beth nodded.

Daryl grabbed his helmet and handed it to her. He went ahead and hopped onto his bike while Beth fastened the straps below her chin. He started it up as the bike roared to life and Beth felt a wave of emotions roll over her. She was partially frightened yet excited. Riding on a motorcycle was something she never would have thought she could say she'd accomplished and here she was, getting on the back of Daryl's.

Beth got on behind him and wrapped her arms around him, perfectly content.

\- - -

Beth hopped off the back of the bike once Daryl brought it to a stop outside of an apartment complex. She started working on pulling the helmet off while Daryl locked his bike up and looked back at her.

"Well?"

"It was fun. I was a little nervous at first—not because of you though. Just a totally different experience." Beth handed him his helmet back once he got back on his feet.

"I could tell. But I'm glad ya enjoyed it." Daryl gave her a brief once over before he turned and headed towards the apartments. Beth followed right alongside him.

Beth remained silent as she followed him up the stairs to the second floor and down the balcony walkway. He stopped halfway down and pulled his keys from his pocket, unlocking the door. He pushed the door open and allowed her to enter before him.

The first thing Beth noticed was that it opened up right into the living area. The second was that it seemed so small. "Jesse lives here with you?"

"He crashes on the couch. He don't have much shit," Daryl explained. "One bedroom apartment. Tiny as all hell, I know."

Beth shook her head. "It's cute." For some reason, it seemed like it was just now occurring to Beth that she was standing in Daryl's apartment. She was alone with Daryl. _Completely_ alone—something she had yet to experience as well. When they were at TM there was still someone there, even if they weren't within earshot or if they couldn't see what was going on. Here it was just the two of them.

And Beth had no idea what to do.

Daryl set his helmet down on the floor next to the door and walked further into the apartment. Beth hesitantly followed him into the kitchen, the next room that was attached to the living room. Then there was a hall that led to two doors which she could only assume was the bathroom and his bedroom.

"Do you think I could stay the night?" Beth suddenly recalled what her plan was and what she had told Maggie earlier that day.

Daryl set his keys on the counter. He didn't say anything in response until he turned around to face her while leaning against the counter. "You sure 'bout that?"

"Positive. If you don't mind, that is."

"Ain't I already on the top of the shit list for your family?"

Beth smiled. "They don't know you. They can't judge you. And I'm eighteen now, remember? Legal adult." She closed the gap between them and brought her lips to his in a kiss. "I already told Maggie I was thinking about spending the night anyway."

"Oh, really?" Daryl raised an eyebrow. "So you become a 'legal adult' and suddenly you're callin' the shots?"

"Not entirely." Beth giggled. "I wouldn't be able to stay here unless you let me." She placed her hands on his shoulders and kissed him again.

"Well, I'm not sure," Daryl kissed her now, "if I want you stayin'."

Beth smiled into the next kiss, running her hands up the back of his neck until they were tangled in his hair. She felt Daryl's hands rest on her hips but left shortly after to cup her face. So far he seemed to be opening up a lot easier and faster than he had that day in his truck. She couldn't help but wonder if maybe he was waiting for this moment. If he maybe had something planned.

Beth started walking backward a few steps bringing Daryl with her. She bit his lip to see if that had any effect on him. He didn't pull away from her so she figured that was at least a start. She dropped her hands back down to his shoulders and massaged them trying to coax him into moving… He ended up placing his hands on her waist and biting her lip back. Then he pulled her closer while taking a step to the right and almost turning them around. His back was now facing towards his bedroom and Beth thought that maybe he was questioning her with his slow advances.

So Beth took a step closer to him, slightly pushing him back. She moved her hands to his biceps and tried not to grin. He had nice arms. Really nice arms. In one last attempt, Beth pressed her lips against Daryl's with more force and allowed her tongue to move even more freely.

Daryl started taking small steps back while returning the favor. And before Beth even knew it, they were standing in his room. He broke the little make out session and held her by her waist at arm's length. His bright blue eyes searched hers as though seeking an answer.

Beth gently pulled his hands from her waist and walked over to his bed. She stared at it for one fleeting moment to really give this all some thought. She wanted this. And she wanted Daryl. And hell, she wanted Daryl to be her first.

She climbed onto the bed and rested her head on a pillow. She could already feel the butterflies in her stomach with just the taste of his kiss and lying on his bed. Daryl lay down next to her, lying on his side to face her. Beth rolled onto her side to face him in return and smiled, grabbing onto his shirt.

"Did you have a change of heart?" Beth joked.

"Might've been somethin' like that." Daryl stared back into her eyes. If Beth hadn't found his piercing stare to be so alluring, she'd have been leaning on the nervous side by now.

Beth pulled herself closer to Daryl and started up where they left off. With her lips locked onto his, she maneuvered herself to where she was on top of him and straddling his waist. She ran her hands through his hair while she felt his hands travel up her shirt and rest on her hips. He pulled her closer as their lips brushed against each other harder. Beth managed to slip away from his mouth and try what he had with her, smoothing her lips across his face and trailing down to the side of his neck. And as she buried her face into the side of his neck and littered him with kisses and tiny bites, she could feel him nuzzle his nose behind her ear, the scruff on the side of his face scratching her chin. He looped his index fingers into her front two belt loops before craning his neck to reach hers, planting kisses and bites alike, gently sucking on her skin.

Beth allowed a small moan to escape her lips as she blindly reached for his shirt again. She found the buttons and worked the top three undone before Daryl stopped and pulled away. She could definitely see the questioning look in his eyes now.

"I'm ready. I want this." Beth leaned down and kissed him softly while working another button undone. There was a sudden shift though as Daryl wrapped his arms around her and switched positions to where she was now lying on her back and he was straddling her. "I trust you," Beth encouraged.

Daryl slightly nodded. He had a hand planted on either side of her as he took her in, his eyes running over her body. His hair was disheveled from Beth running her fingers all through it and his shirt was half undone. And Beth didn't think he could look more attractive.

"I don't think you are." The words slipped from Daryl's mouth so quietly that Beth wasn't sure she heard him right.

"You don't think I'm ready?" Beth questioned. She felt all of the tension that had built up over the course of time since she stepped foot into the apartment seem to rush out of her body leaving her feeling limp and lifeless. "… _I'm_ not ready or _you're_ not ready?"

"I'm not the virgin in this equation." Daryl kept his voice low.

Beth buried her face in her hands. If she could dissolve into thin air and disappear, now would be a good time. Because it wasn't already humiliating enough that she's an eighteen year old going after a thirty-two year old. Add that to being a virgin and throwing herself at Daryl just now in hopes that he'd look past all of that—but he didn't.

"Hey…" Daryl grabbed her hands and moved them away from her face. "That don't change nothin'."

Beth fought back the tears and nodded. She should be thankful Daryl's looking out for her. He was doing this for her, right? And she was spending the night with him. That's more than she could ever ask for in itself.

Baby steps. That's the term. She was starting to make this about her again and not seeing it from his perspective. Maybe he felt uncomfortable with the idea. Maybe she just needed to give him a little more time and he'd open up completely.

 _She was spending the night with him_. He was hers and she was his. That's all that mattered.


	29. Chapter 29

That night Beth had fallen asleep curled up next to Daryl. She pushed the thought of him practically rejecting her from her mind. Besides, she really wasn't sure if she was actually ready anyway. She wanted to be though. That was for sure.

Beth awoke once morning rolled around. She rubbed her eyes and yawned before she realized Daryl wasn't beside her. She quickly sat up in bed and furrowed her brow. First he didn't want to have sex with her and now she couldn't even have the chance to wake up beside him?

She got out of bed and opened the bedroom door. It was completely silent: no Daryl and no Jesse. So Beth ducked into the bathroom and hit the light switch so that she could make sure she looked okay. She adjusted her shirt since it was slightly twisted and she pulled her hair down from her ponytail, running her fingers through it to smooth it out and put it back up again.

She hit the lights off and quietly stepped out of the bathroom as though she were going to get caught. She smiled to herself. Fixing her hair wasn't a crime. As she walked out into the living room, she could make out Daryl and Jesse's voices just outside the door. She barely lifted one of the blinds covering the window and saw that they were both leaning against the railing smoking a cigarette. And she smiled again, seeing that they were being sociable with one another. Odd to think that all this time Beth had been talking to Jesse, he was related to Daryl. And none of them even knew it.

Beth grasped the door handle and slowly opened the door. She was immediately met with a stare from both of them before receiving smiles. She closed the door behind her and made her way over to Daryl, wrapping her arms around him. He had already showered and gotten dressed for the day as his hair was still damp and he was wearing a gray button up shirt, his work shirt, that looked as though the sleeves had been torn off leaving it a bit frayed. She felt a tad embarrassed that she apparently slept through all of that.

"I've give you two some space." Jesse put his cigarette out in the ashtray and stepped back inside. Beth felt guilty that he was keeping his distance for their sake but she also respected him for not standing around and gawking uncomfortably.

"G'morning." Daryl put his cigarette out while wrapping an arm around her. He kissed her on the forehead causing her to grin.

"Good morning," Beth hummed against his chest. "…I take it you don't like sleeves?" She figured she wouldn't hound him about leaving her to wake up alone.

Daryl got a chuckle out of that. "Not a big sleeve kinda guy."

"Well, I'd have to say I agree." Beth stepped back and placed her hands on his arms smiling sheepishly up at him.

Daryl placed his index finger under Beth's chin and tilted her head up. He wore a smirk as he shook his head in response to what she had said. He leaned down and kissed her on the lips afterward.

The kiss sparked the memory of him doing nearly the same thing in front of her siblings and her mind started reeling again. "You'll have to meet my family at some point you know."

"I don't think that's such a great idea." Daryl leaned back against the railing.

"Why not? They'll love you. Or they'll at least grow to love you," Beth encouraged. "Maggie is already lightening up. Shawn is too."

"S'not your siblings I'm worried 'bout."

"My parents are understanding. Maybe not as much but they can come around. They will come around."

Daryl locked eyes with her and she was beginning to see that this was his way of trying to read her. But he didn't continue anymore on that topic. "You ready to go?"

Beth was hoping to spend more time with him but since he was sporting his work shirt, she supposed he had to go to work. She weakly nodded and Daryl stepped back into his apartment to grab his keys and helmet. He immediately handed the helmet off to Beth before walking down the balcony and heading for the stairs with her in tow.

She had just gotten the helmet fastened once they reached the ground floor and walked to his bike. And just like yesterday, once he got it running, she slipped on behind him with her arms wrapped around him with a smile.

\- - -

Daryl pulled into Teller-Morrow and drove up to the row of motorcycles that was already forming. He downshifted into neutral and walked his bike back between two of them before he kicked the kickstand down and shut the engine off. Beth took that as her signal and got off while unfastening the straps of the helmet from under her chin. Daryl removed the key from the ignition and pocketed it before getting back on his feet.

"Well… I hope ya had a good birthday." Daryl took the helmet from Beth's outstretched hand and set it down on the ground by his bike. He wasn't quite sure how Beth was reacting to him slamming the brakes on yesterday during their little escapade but he had his reasons.

"The best birthday." Beth smiled up at him and hugged him for the second time that morning. "Thank you for being a part of it."

He gave her a one-armed hug and a quick kiss on the lips before she left and headed home. Rubbing his face, he headed over toward the garage where he found Jax with his arms crossed and a grin on his face.

"I don't even wanna hear it," Daryl grumbled.

"Aw, c'mon, man. Lighten up." Jax teased, "I didn't say anything."

"That grin on your face is sayin' otherwise." Daryl changed the topic before Jax could pursue anything. "You and Tara ever get your shit figured out?"

Jax sighed and lowered his head. "Yeah, if you can consider it that. She's going back. Said she's fed up with all the bullshit around here and the club. Better pay up in Chicago too apparently—bigger city, bigger hospital."

"Can't really blame her…" Daryl muttered. Things could be a real disaster around there. And the standing rule about their old ladies was that they either had to know everything that went on or nothing at all. There was no half in half out. Now that Daryl thought about it, he wondered where that put him with Beth. He wasn't sure telling her about SAMCRO would be such a great idea but at the same time, he didn't want to necessarily keep it from her. "Sorry to hear that though."

"Don't be. My mom called it before it happened. I was just too stupid to listen."

"Gemma's pretty good at that."

"Calling things out or making you feel stupid?" Opie butted into the conversation in passing. The three shared in a small laugh and Jax yelled after Opie to watch his mouth.

"Hey, do me a favor. I gotta make some phone calls but the woman coming to pick up her Mercedes should be here soon. I dealt with her yesterday and whenever she gets here I just need you to give her the keys, no charge." Jax pulled his cell phone from his pocket. "Mistake on our behalf."

"Mistake or she just complain?" Daryl raised an eyebrow. Yes, he had his moments where he did judge people. But first of all, it was a woman. Second, she was driving a Mercedes. Money and women never went hand in hand very well. Though neither did men…

Jax chuckled. "Mistake but a little bit of both. 'Customers are always right'." He started walking off toward the clubhouse and dialing a number.

"Customers are always right, my ass," Daryl mumbled to himself. He managed to keep himself busy with tasks around the garage until he saw a taxi pull up. Squinting out into the light of the day, he saw a middle-aged woman exit from the vehicle toting a large purse on her shoulder and her dark hair clipped up on her head. She wore what seemed to be some sort of business attire that reminded him of something that would deal with CEOs or something of that nature: black heels, long pencil skirt, and a blazer. She was definitely the owner of the Mercedes.

Daryl wiped his hands off on a rag and stuffed it in his back pocket with a sigh before walking out to meet the woman. He couldn't help but wonder what she was doing on this side of town anyway. She certainly seemed out of place.

"Are you the one who has my keys? I talked to some blonde guy yesterday." The woman started in before Daryl could even say anything. "He said I was free and clear, no charge. One of your guys screwed something up and I couldn't get my car back until today. I don't think you realize how much of a pain that is. I had to call into work to tell them I'd be late because some mechanics didn't know what they were doing."

Daryl forced a smile, only obvious that he wanted to give her a piece of his mind. But he kept his mouth shut. "No, he explained everything. Mercedes. Got it." As soon as Daryl turned around, his back facing her, he rolled his eyes and groaned. He was just glad Jax had to deal with her when everything else went down.

Daryl headed into the office to grab the woman's keys and slightly froze when he ran into Clay. He was seated at the desk working on something of the sort and upon seeing the door open, he looked up at Daryl with that damn infamous fake smile. Daryl slightly twitched, tensing up as he always had around the man. He tried to ignore him and grabbed the keys hanging on the wall before Clay spoke up.

"How have you been lately? Don't see you around much." Clay sat back in his chair. He directed his attention down at his hands while he rubbed his arthritis-ridden knuckles.

"Okay." Daryl replied with the shortest response he could fathom and shrugged. Ever since everything that happened with Merle and the club, Clay Morrow and the Dixons didn't mix—and Daryl was very well aware of that. Merle too, but anytime he was around Clay he just liked to push his buttons. Merle just didn't give a damn whereas Daryl had to watch what he said and did around him, considering he still had a job and was technically a part of SAMCRO.

As soon as Daryl turned back around and placed his hand on the door knob to leave, Clay spoke up again:

"That Beth's a pretty girl. She seems like a nice young lady."

Daryl's grip tightened on the door knob and he gritted his teeth before slowly looking back at Clay. He was now fiddling with a pen between his hands, the same cheeky smile across his face. It took everything Daryl had not to lose his shit right then and there. Getting tangled up with Clay was an automatic "treading on thin ice" scenario.

He threw the door open with a little more force than necessary, startled to see Gemma on the other side, her hand frozen in the air momentarily as she was just about to enter the office herself. She placed her hand over her chest and laughed.

"Scared the shit outta me. Makin' me think I got some kind of psychic powers or something." Gemma smiled.

"Maybe one day." Daryl commented before sliding past her with the Mercedes key still in hand.

Unbeknownst to Daryl, Gemma stood where she was and watched him walk over to the woman to deliver the keys. She placed her hands on her hips before stepping inside the office, shutting the door behind her and eyeing her husband. "What'd you say to him?"

Clay shrugged and set the pen back down on the desk as he got back on his feet. "Nothing." He placed his hands on her hips and leaned in for a kiss but Gemma pulled back, her eyes narrowed.

"I know better than that," she warned.

"Kid's always tense. Why you think it has something to do with me?" Clay smiled, leaning in and getting his kiss after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, Sons of Anarchy kind of robbed this chapter from me...


	30. Chapter 30

"And…take a right here. Just stay on this road." Beth gave Daryl directions on where to go, having claimed she had something she wanted to show him. She had met up with him at Teller-Morrow. Little did he know she was luring him back to her house—but he'd figure that out soon enough.

"Where exactly are you takin' me besides to the middle of nowhere?" Daryl glanced over at her with a hand on the wheel. They had reached the dirt road that led up to her house, his truck kicking up dust over the rough terrain.

"It's a secret." Beth smiled sheepishly. She knew she shouldn't have fibbed to get him to do this but it was the only way she saw it happening. There was no way she'd get him to show up at her front door on his own freewill. She'd have to prove to him that her family accepted him. They would accept him.

"…I hate secrets," Daryl mumbled.

He remained silent from there on out until the large white two story home came into view. Beth could see him looking over at the house and back to her while doing a double take from the corner of her eye. She tried not to smile or say anything but her lips were already twitching.

Daryl stopped his truck and put it in park. He wasn't going too fast so the unexpected stop had only caused Beth to slightly jerk forward on the bench seat and turn her attention to him. He was glaring over at her, waiting for her to explain.

"I'm sorry. I just wanted you to meet my family and I knew this was the only way it would work. Just…please don't be mad." Beth frowned.

Daryl sighed and rested his forehead against the steering wheel, his arms wrapped around it. She figured that was better than him lashing out at her considering she'd already had a taste of what he could be like when he was pissed off. She honestly hoped she'd never see that side of him again.

"What the hell do you expect me to do? What am I supposed to say?" Daryl lifted his head back up and looked over at her.

"You don't have to say or do anything. Just be yourself."

"Right… 'Cause I'm so charming," he muttered sarcastically.

"Hey—if I thought this was a bad idea, I wouldn't have led you here. But I think it'd be nice if you met my family and they met you. Then maybe they'll stop being so paranoid when I'm with you," Beth tried.

"Your dad ain't gonna answer the door with a shotgun in hand, is he?"

Beth stiffened at his words. "You're joking, right?"

"Maybe…" Daryl kept a straight face for a while but ended up smirking.

"My dad does have a shotgun, just so you know. But he'd never get it out and shoot you for crying out loud."

"Feel better already…" Daryl put his truck back in drive and eased his foot back on the gas.

Beth just had to accept his sarcasm and let him get it out of his system. Maybe things wouldn't go over entirely well but she at least had Maggie on her side. Maggie could help her get everyone else to see the full picture, that Daryl wasn't a bad guy. After all, they say people should never judge a book by its cover—and Beth was guilty of that plenty times over. But after meeting Daryl and getting to know him? Well, things changed.

Daryl parked next to the Suburban and shut the engine off. "Did they at least get a heads up 'bout all this?"

Beth bit her lip. "Not entirely. I wasn't sure if you'd, um…"

"Fall for it?" Daryl finished her thought and she nodded gingerly.

They clambered out of his truck just as the screen door to the house squealed its way open and smacked shut soon after. Beth noticed it was only Maggie thus far as she climbed down the few stairs and walked over towards them.

"So I guess today's the day?" Maggie shielded her eyes from the sun. She stopped just short of Daryl and Beth as they stood side by side. Maggie looked Daryl over. "Daryl Dixon. Who'd have thought…"

"Where are mom and dad?" Beth inquired.

"Inside. Mom's in the kitchen and dad's in the dining room."

"And Shawn?"

"Give it a minute. I'm sure he'll be out here shortly." Maggie looked back to Daryl, "You sweatin' it yet?"

Daryl scoffed. "Guess I ain't got a reason to accordin' to Beth."

Maggie smiled. "You ought to be counting your lucky stars that I'm even being this civil to you—if you recall the first and last time we met."

"I know, I was a real dick. It's in my nature." Daryl shrugged. "Sorry."

"Better hope that changes for your sake. You don't want to tangle with this family," Maggie warned.

"Maggie—he's fine. Everything's okay. You're supposed to be on my side here," Beth reminded her.

"I am but I have to lay down the law too. You are my sister after all." Maggie looked them both over one last time before turning and heading back for the house. Beth just followed with Daryl in tow behind her. She figured it was bad enough that he had been tricked into going to her house without a warning—she didn't want to push it by holding his hand.

The screen door smacked shut behind the trio once they entered inside. They ran into Hershel first as he had risen from the dining room table and was headed toward the door. He stopped in his tracks once he locked eyes with the stranger in his house. Maggie forced a smile and sidled past their father to give them some space.

"Daddy…this is Daryl," Beth started awkwardly. "I know I didn't really give you a heads up but if it makes you feel any better I didn't really…give Daryl a heads up either." When she looked up at Daryl she noticed he was chewing on the side of his mouth. If she didn't know any better, she'd guess he was about ready to run. Maybe she didn't realize how truly uncomfortable this whole situation would be overall.

Hershel didn't seem too pleased but on the bright side, he didn't seem too angered either. "Daryl Dixon, so I've heard." He hesitantly outstretched a hand to shake Daryl's out of politeness. "Hershel Greene. Knew your father quite a few years back. You were just a little boy then. And now here you are, standing in my house…"

Beth could see Daryl visibly tense up at the mentioning of her dad knowing his as he pulled his hand back. That was all apparently news to him. "Yeah, that's me…"

"Beth tells me you two met outside of Jake's Bar. She had some car troubles and you tried to help." Hershel looked Daryl over and Beth could tell the gears were working overtime in his head. Daryl was still wearing his work shirt—one with the sleeves still attached.

Daryl vaguely nodded. "Right. Figured it wasn't the best part of town for a girl like Beth to get stranded."

"I agree and I appreciate that. I don't know what I would do if anything happened to either of my daughters, or son for that matter."

Beth fidgeted closer toward Daryl so that her arm brushed against his whilst staring back at her father. "Do you think I could show him around?" She figured she'd break him away from her dad before anything could escalate. Her dad could always talk to him later.

After Hershel looked his youngest daughter and Daryl over, he gave them the okay with a strict warning to avoid visiting her bedroom. That remark had caused both Beth and Daryl's faces to flush with embarrassment as Daryl rubbed the back of his neck and avoided meeting her dad's stare. If Beth would have gotten her wish on her birthday, her father's comment would have been even more mortifying.

Beth snatched Daryl's hand without a second thought and tugged him along with her to get away from her dad, her head down to try and hide her blush. She only managed a brief tour of the main floor before she headed outside with him and walked a little ways toward the vast field.

"I know I said I wanted you to meet my family but I don't want it to be overkill," Beth explained. Truly, she just didn't want Daryl to feel like he was a trapped animal being surrounded by her family members.

"No, it's fine… Guess it woulda had to have been done eventually, right?" Daryl lightly kicked at the wooden fence. He turned his head to provide Beth with his signature smirk.

Beth could only smile in return. If he meant that then he was implying he wasn't planning on going anywhere. She could have sworn she felt her heart swell just thinking about it—the fact that he must really like her in return and yet it still felt like they barely knew each other. But maybe they knew each other better than she let on.

"You don't have to stay long if you don't want to. My dad will probably want to talk to you again before we leave though."

"I'll be gone before dinner, you can count on that."

"I don't blame you. Meeting everyone for the first time and then sitting down at a table with all of us would be pretty unnerving." Beth trapped Daryl against the fence and wrapped her arms around his waist. "We can be a pretty intimidating bunch when you get us all together."

"A force I'd rather not mess with." Daryl placed his hands on either side of her hips. He kissed the top of her head.

"We're not bad though. I promise." Beth leaned back so that her hands were resting on his back yet she could still look up at him.

"I know."

It wasn't much longer after that when Beth heard her father yelling for her to come back in. She turned to see him standing on the porch with his hand perched on his hips looking out at them. And as soon as she noticed he was outside she felt Daryl's hands slip away from her hips, falling back down at his sides.

They walked back toward the house and just as Beth suspected, her dad wanted to speak to Daryl again. Only this time he wanted to speak to him alone. Beth had been ushered back inside while the two men stayed outside on the porch. But of course Beth couldn't leave it at that. She snuck to whatever window she could without her mom or siblings seeing her trying to eavesdrop on the conversation that was about to take place.

Beth managed to crack the window in the front room and got down on her knees beside it. Her mom was upstairs as well as Shawn, which only left Maggie. She hadn't thought anything about Maggie sneaking up on her but of course, she did.

"What're you doing?"

Beth jumped, clapping a hand over her mouth to keep from squealing. "Dad's talking to Daryl."

Maggie said no more as she ducked down beside Beth on the floor and leaned an ear toward the window. Neither of them could see the men out on the porch so listening in on them would have to suffice.

"What are _you_ doing?" Beth whispered.

"Same thing you are. What's it look like?" Maggie grinned.

Beth rolled her eyes but she let it slide. There was no point in arguing otherwise she wouldn't be able to hear anything.

Whatever her dad was talking to Daryl about, it started off quiet. She could barely hear them no matter how hard she strained to press her ear to the open window. Then she could hear Daryl mention something about the land and her dad telling him all about their property and how it's been in the family for 160 years. It was at that point when Maggie parted ways, leaving Beth alone to tend to the window. Whether she found it to be tedious or she decided to give Beth her space after all, she didn't know. But when Maggie left, the conversation had taken a turn.

"Now I don't know you and I don't know what your intentions are with my daughter, but she is my youngest daughter and I know she thinks very highly of you. I would expect you to treat her right but you're not going to receive my approval…"

"I'm not gonna stand here and try to convince you what's best. That's your job and I respect that. And I'm not sayin' I'm the best option either but I can promise you that nothin' will happen to her. She's safe."

"And I respect your opinion, son. But I just don't think you're suited for Beth. I prefer it if you would leave her alone and carry on with your life to whatever you were doing before she came along."

There was a moment of silence before Daryl replied to her father. Beth felt like if she could lean any closer to the window, she would have popped the screen out and fallen onto the porch.

"I'm sorry but all due respect…" Daryl paused before continuing, "I don't think I can do that."


	31. Chapter 31

Things had gone better than Beth had expected—though she didn't exactly have high expectations in the first place. She should have planned it out better than she had instead of going at it blindly. But hearing Daryl tell her father that he wasn't going to back down, that he didn't think he could? It gave her the chills. The good kind of chills that erupted with dancing butterflies and silly giggles she could barely withhold. It made her think that maybe, just maybe, she had broken through to him. He didn't strike her as the type to lie straight to someone's face just to get a reaction out of him. No, he meant what he said to her dad. He wasn't going anywhere. And Beth would give him that. She'd act as though she had never eavesdropped just to give him some peace of mind.

After heading back to TM with Daryl to get her car, she went home. She didn't want to smother Daryl too much and she didn't want her parents plotting how to put an end to their relationship, wherever it stood. Her mom had remained pretty quiet when Daryl was there and Shawn just hung back. Beth knew her mother didn't approve. It was written clear as day on her face and in the way her body language spoke, arms crossed and keeping her distance. She got that confirmation after dinner.

"How long has this been going on? Behind mine and your father's back." Annette questioned Beth as she helped with the dishes.

Beth hesitated. "A couple months... Maybe?"

"Months?" Annette set the clean plate down and dried her hands on the towel.

"I know you guys don't think he's right for me or whatever but can't you just give him a chance? You don't even know him. He hasn't done anything to hurt me." Beth tried to reason. She had to take the mature route. Pouting and whining wouldn't get her anywhere. She wasn't even sure that her parents would ever accept Daryl anyway.

Beth could see the grim look on her mother’s face as she sifted through her thoughts. “I just can’t believe my little girl would want anything to do with a Dixon. If he hurts you—“

“Annette,” Hershel cut her off. Beth turned to see him standing in the doorway. “Some other time.”

\- - -

Beth knew neither of her parents wanted her to be with Daryl, that much was clear. But she could tell that neither of them wanted to force her away from him either. They had apparently learned from earlier on that there was no way to stop her if she didn’t want to be stopped. And yet here she was on the fourth of July with both her siblings, Haley, Jesse, Daryl, and a handful of the guys from TM. 

Shawn had driven them down to an open field where they usually sat and watched the fireworks, only this year would be different. They had quite the company, and their parents decided to stay home. Shawn didn’t really stick around a whole lot as Beth kept an eye on him when they first arrived that afternoon. Apparently he had a girlfriend that he had been keeping secret and didn’t want anyone to meet. 

Beth sat with Daryl by her side in the grass, Haley and Jesse on her other side. Since graduation, those two seemed to be inseparable. Jesse was doing better than ever and Beth had never seen Haley so chipper. It was so relaxing just to be able to sit there and unwind, even though there were a ton of people surrounding them to watch the fireworks themselves. 

“If I was thinking, we should have just crashed at TM and thrown a little party. You can see the fireworks from there pretty well,” Jax commented. He sat down a little ways from Daryl.

“You should have. Would have been a lot more peaceful,” Maggie replied. 

“Well, maybe next year. We’re here now. I don’t even want to think about traffic getting out of here.” Jax lit a cigarette, glancing over at Maggie as she sat down beside him now. 

“Who says we have to get out of here right away?” 

Jax grinned. “Oh, really?” 

Maggie shoved Jax into Daryl. “Pull your head out of your ass. I didn’t say anything was going to happen.”

Daryl shoved Jax back toward Maggie. “He’s your problem now. I’d almost be willin’ to place a bet he’ll get you wrapped ‘round his finger before the night’s over.”

“Very unlikely, Dixon.” Maggie crossed her arms and looked Jax over, “…Good looks only get you so far.” 

“I have a very charming personality too.” Jax forced a smile causing Maggie to laugh. 

Beth leaned closer to Daryl. “So Tara…?” 

Daryl shook his head. “They split.”

Beth nodded. If Jax was single, Maggie was single… Jax seemed like a pretty friendly guy. “How much are we betting?”

“What?” Daryl furrowed his brow. “You can’t be serious—I was jokin’.”

“I got five bucks that says it’ll happen.” Haley leaned forward past Jesse to look over at Daryl and Beth. “I mean, look at them.”

As if on cue, the four turned to look over at Jax and Maggie making the pair freeze. Maggie went red in the face and Jax tried to hide a smirk behind his cigarette. Nobody said a word though. They just shared in a laugh. 

Things quieted down after that as Haley turned back to Jesse and Jax and Maggie minded their own business. Opie was with a woman who looked like they were a couple of some sort and Gemma was with Clay. The rest of the guys must have been single because they didn’t have anyone else besides each other—and that proved to be plenty.

“So…I didn’t get shot.” Daryl muttered. He had his arms resting across his knees staring out at the kids running around screaming, the parents chasing them down. Beth must have provided him with a confused look because he elaborated further, “Your dad.”

Beth rolled her eyes and hooked her arm with his. Her hand fell into the crook of his elbow. “Will you stop worrying about that?” 

“I’m not worried. It’s just…what I said to him. I probably should have rethought that.” Daryl rubbed the back of his neck with his unoccupied hand. 

“What do you mean?” Beth had to remind herself that she didn’t eavesdrop. She didn’t want Daryl to know she overheard everything. 

“I kinda told him it was…your decision to make. Not his.” Daryl shrugged.

Beth chewed on her lip. He was trying to hide what he had said as well. She wanted to tease him and ask why he could have so much confidence talking to her father but not her—she almost did. But she caught herself just in time. “Well, it is my decision. And I’m sticking to it.” 

Beth saw that infamous smirk cross Daryl’s lips even though he was still staring off straight ahead. He always seemed like he was in deep thought, like every time he spoke or did anything, he had to think about it first. He still seemed…guarded.

“Lighten up.” Beth slightly ducked and pulled his arm around her. She leaned into him, her head resting on his shoulder while she kept a hold of his arm. “You always seem so tense. Nobody’s gonna jump out and attack or something.” 

Daryl’s face slightly flushed as he chuckled softly. “You tryin’a tell me the Boogeyman don’t exist? Damn… And here I thought he did.” 

“Okay, ha ha.” Beth giggled. She wrapped her arm around him now to somewhat complete the embrace all while noticing he had a hole in the knee of his pants once again. “So no sleeves and holey jeans. I suppose you’re gonna tell me that you prefer having a hole in your knee as well?” 

“Nah, he just spends a lot of time on his knees.” Jax’s outburst had Beth’s attention as she noticed Maggie clamped her hand over her mouth trying not to laugh. Beth quickly looked up at Daryl’s face and bit her lip trying to hold back a laugh herself. All Daryl could do was manage a glare.

“Nice one,” Jesse commented. “I would have said the same thing but ya know… I kinda like having a roof over my head.”

“Fuck you guys…” Daryl grumbled. Jax grinned, looking like he was about to say something more on the topic before Daryl cut him off. “Don’t even think ‘bout it.” 

“Come on. Let’s go for a walk.” Beth felt bad after having mentioned anything about a damn hole in the knee of his pants but was glad they were able to laugh it off. “Get away from the _jerks_ ,” She added, smiling as she got to her feet. 

Daryl got up and on his feet as well before they started drifting away from the group and into the chaos of people. Everyone in the nearby area seemed to have brought their families down here, lawn chairs and blankets galore. Beth found it to be kind of nice but she figured it was probably freaking Daryl out. He didn’t seem to be much of a people person, more comfortable when it was only a select few surrounding him. 

“Maybe TM would have been a better choice after all.” Beth cautiously laced her fingers with Daryl’s. She was almost certain that marked the first time she had ever held his hand and it made her feel good. It was always the little things.

“Probably woulda been just as crazy.” Just as Daryl spoke, a young boy ran straight into him, panting for breath after having been running from what looked to be a game of tag. She felt Daryl stiffen at the contact and his hand slipped from hers soon after once she noticed a man jogging over towards them. 

“Carl—“ The man stopped near them and placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “You have to watch where you’re going.” 

The boy, who Beth assumed was the man’s son, nodded. He took off towards a slim brunette woman and crashed into her, his small arms wrapped around her. Most likely his mother. 

The man straightened up as he took in the sight of Beth and Daryl, his stare lingering a moment longer on Beth before switching back to Daryl. He slightly narrowed his eyes and nodded in recognition. “Dixon.”

“Grimes.” Daryl had the same look about him. It was only obvious these two had some sort of history together, and Beth could only guess it wasn’t good. 

Lucky for them, the apparent wife had walked back over towards them with Carl. “I’m really sorry. I told him to apologize for running into you but he’s just a little shy.” 

“It’s okay. It’s not a big deal. Really.” Beth spoke on behalf of them and smiled at the boy. He seemed to turn a shade of red from the attention.

“Rick, sweetie…” The woman placed a hand on the man’s arm and smiled. And with that, the small family unit retreated without another word. 

Daryl continued walking on the random path they had been on prior to the run in with the Grimes family. Beth almost had to jog to catch up with him since she didn’t immediate notice he had started moving again. 

“Okay, who’s Rick Grimes?” 

“An asshole cop.”

“Then what was with the stare down?” Beth gave it some thought, how Rick stared at her and then Daryl. The fact that Daryl let go of her hand when he showed up. She let out an audible “oh” once the realization hit her. This Rick Grimes must have been the cop that arrested Daryl—or rather, tried to arrest him—based on the false accusations of rape and possession of meth. Was Rick thinking Daryl did something to her?

“Anytime something goes down involving the cops, he’s usually the one that shows up. Him and his lil’ partner have arrested Merle a few times.”

Beth just nodded. She was all for dropping that topic and moving onto the next, especially when the thought hit her that Rick looked like he was thinking Daryl was guilty of something. It upset her knowing all these different people had preconceived notions of Daryl. Of course she wasn’t too fond of him based off of his appearance when they first met outside that bar but she didn’t necessarily act on that judgment. Besides, look where she was now.

“We should probably start heading back toward the group before we lose the light,” Beth suggested. “It’s starting to get dark.”

Daryl had agreed and led the way back. Beth managed to grab his hand again along the way. If nothing else, she’d use the excuse of not wanting to lose him in the crowd. 

Once they made it back, Beth instantly noticed that her sister was missing as well as Jax. She looked to Haley and Jesse for an answer but all she got out of them was a smile. 

“Okay, where’d they go?” Beth asked as she sat down next to them. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Haley replied, leaning into Jesse. 

There was a bright flash of light from the sky followed by a _boom_ as the first firework had been set off. Daryl sat down beside Beth before he ended up lying back, propping his hands behind his head. Beth lay down next to him nuzzling into his side and placed a hand on his chest. She promptly kissed him on the cheek before she averted her attention up to the sky just in time for two more fireworks to go off. 

And even though the day may not have been very eventful, Beth had a feeling this was the best Independence Day she had experienced.


	32. Chapter 32

Beth had met up with Daryl at his apartment before he ended up leading her somewhere as a "secret". She figured she had it coming after luring him to her house unexpectedly. And now that she was sitting in the passenger side of his truck with no clue where they were headed, she understood how Daryl felt that day. Maybe she wasn't a big fan of surprises either.

"I don't even get a hint?"

"Nope." Daryl glanced over at her before returning his attention to the road. "I can tell you it has nothin' to do with meetin' my dad, if that helps."

Beth smiled weakly, torn between the fact that he was trying to joke about her taking him to meet her parents and the fact that she probably never would meet his dad for understandable reasons. "Well, you got me. I'm stumped."

"Good."

The drive was fairly quiet after that but Beth didn't mind. She kept herself content by watching everything pass by through the window. She was curious what exactly Daryl had planned yet intrigued. She certainly didn't peg him to be romantic by any means but she knew she would be perfectly fine with wherever he was taking her.

It was once they hit a dirt road that Beth had a feeling they were getting close. And it wasn't long after that when he brought his truck to a stop and killed the engine.

Beth could already see what it was that Daryl had planned. It was like some kind of nature outing, nothing around but trees, a lake, and wilderness. She'd never seen something so serene.

"Wow… This? This is amazing!" Beth smiled as she exited from his truck. She met him around the front where he was already leaning against the bumper.

"Nothin' special." Daryl shrugged. "This is where I usually come if I'm not at home or TM."

"It's relaxing. I can see why." Beth stared out at the lake while listening to the birds sing overhead. They were practically out in the country and it was far enough from the main road that the sounds of vehicles passing by and civilization felt like it had just disappeared. Similar to where she lived but much more beautiful and untouched.

"I'd take ya on a grand tour but I think it's pretty self explanatory." Daryl smirked.

Beth grabbed his hand and pulled him off his truck before leading him over towards the lake. She sat down by the water's edge after kicking her shoes off and rolling her jeans up slightly, then dipped her feet into the water. Daryl followed her lead while sitting down next to her.

She placed her hand over his. "This is perfect."

"Glad you like it. Figured you being a farmer's daughter and all, you'd probably like nature too."

"I love it." Beth squeezed his hand. "I used to think it'd be nice to get away and live in the city but I'd really rather be out in the middle of nowhere than be cramped up with…everything."

It fell silent again for a few minutes while they just sat and stared out at the lake in all its glory, enjoying each other's company. But Beth could see Daryl slightly fidget from the corner of her eye, chewing on the side of his thumb before he cleared his throat.

"I wasn't…entirely honest 'bout what I said to your dad."

Beth could tell whatever was about to come out of Daryl's mouth, he was being very hesitant about it. But there was nothing he should be nervous about... "Oh?"

"He asked me to leave you alone and…I told him I couldn't." Beth wanted to ask him what he meant but she didn't want to push it. So she waited for him to continue. "I—you're too good for me and I'm not used to it." Daryl paused, "I'm shocked you're still here."

Beth pulled her feet out of the water and sat with her legs crossed facing Daryl. "You can't mean that—" She bit her lip. Daryl kept his stare on the lake. "You deserve to be happy. And you're one of the nicest guys I've ever met."

Daryl scoffed. "You must not know many guys."

"I know you're the only guy I completely trust. And I don't care what my dad said to you because nothing is going to change." Beth thought all this time she'd end up being rejected because of her age, because he was quite a bit older than her. But it wasn't that—it was that Daryl was afraid of her, like he was afraid of getting hurt.

Beth got back on her feet, drawing Daryl's attention to her. She bit her lip again and grabbed the bottom of her shirt. She slowly pulled her shirt off over her head and looked down at Daryl. He quickly turned his head away, blushing. She felt her face grow warm as well feeling a bit self conscious. But she trusted him and she wanted to prove that.

Beth unbuttoned her jeans and slid them off, stepping out of them. She tossed both of the clothing articles on the ground and started walking out into the water. It was pretty brisk even though it was a warm day, the temperature change sending a shiver down her spine. Once she was far enough out to where the water was up to her chest, she turned back to Daryl. He was watching her now.

"What if I told you I can't swim? Would you save me?" Beth smirked.

Daryl got to his feet. "First of all, I'd say you were bluffin'." Beth could tell from where she was that Daryl was chewing on his lip. He cautiously unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it next to Beth's clothes. He pulled his undershirt up over his head and tossed it next, followed by his pants before he started walking out toward Beth. "But yeah, I would."

"Good to know." Beth pulled her hair down from her ponytail and dipped her head under the water. She started swimming her way further away from Daryl but it wasn't long after when she felt his arm around her waist and pulled her up. Once they surfaced, Beth laughed and placed a hand on his arm that was still wrapped around her. "Okay, you got me!"

She turned to where she was facing him and smiled up at him. He seemed a lot more at ease being out and away from everything, which in turn made Beth feel more at ease too. She placed a hand on either side of his face and brought her lips to his. That short, simple kiss had progressed as Daryl ran his hands through her hair and started walking backward towards land. Beth stayed attached to him up until he slightly tripped.

Daryl had fallen backward, partially underwater until he came up and shook his head like a dog. Beth had fallen on top of him with a gasp but once she realized they were both fine, she giggled. The water was plenty shallow enough seeing as Daryl was now sitting. Beth adjusted herself and straddled his lap before going right back into kissing.

After a while, they officially returned back to land. Daryl slipped his shirt back on and buttoned it up halfway and Beth wore his undershirt. It was a bit big on her but it still worked. They both finished getting dressed before sitting back down on the ground side by side staring out at the lake once again.

"So…" Beth began. She attempted to wring out her hair. "How long have you worked at Teller-Morrow?"

Daryl scratched his chin. "Five years maybe?"

"So then what does SAMCRO mean? I was kinda looking around the clubhouse one day and I saw it above the wall of mug shots." Beth looked over at him. "You don't have a mug shot, do you?"

"Well, somebody's observant," Daryl joked. "It's just an acronym. Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Original. And no, I don't have a mug shot."

"Good." Beth smiled. "But what does all of that mean? You guys obviously do more than work at an auto repair shop if there's a wall of mug shots."

Daryl sighed. "You sure you really want to get into all this?"

Beth nodded. "I'd like to know what's going on."

"We…run guns." Daryl shrugged. "Clay wants to do more to turn a larger profit. I don't know…"

"But that's illegal—you're involved in that?" Beth turned to face him completely now. She never would have expected Daryl to be involved in some sort of gun business. "Is that even safe?"

"Not in as deep as I used to be, no worries. Ever since everything that happened with Merle… When he got kicked out, I kinda stepped down."

"But it's still dangerous?" All Beth could picture was some kind of rival gang attacking TM out of the blue. Maybe she should have asked about this SAMCRO stuff a lot sooner.

"I got a gun in my truck. Take that as you will."

"You're telling me you're in a gun business and you have a gun in your truck. I apologize if I seem a little freaked out right now…"

Daryl stared back at her. "You're safe. I'm safe. Nothin' to worry about, alright?"

Beth slowly nodded. She did feel safe with Daryl, it's just that the news didn't settle right with her. Now if her family had any clue what she had gotten herself into, she'd be completely banned from seeing him. It wouldn't surprise her if her parents went to the extreme to keep her away from him. But Daryl did have a point. They'd been together for quite some time now and nothing bad ever happened—well, not technically.

"Okay." Beth leaned against him and hooked her arm with his. She laced her fingers with his and squeezed his hand. "There's still nothing changing about us."


	33. Chapter 33

After hearing about TM and the truth behind SAMCRO, Beth tried to push it to the back of her mind. She didn't want to let it bother her—the knowledge that her boyfriend (was he her boyfriend...?) was involved in gang affiliated activities and currently still was to some degree. She never would have pictured the day she'd end up with a motorcycle gang member.

Daryl drove them back to his place for the night. Beth had called Maggie on the way back to let her know, assuming and practically forcing her sister to play messenger with their parents. It worked out easier that way because their parents couldn't get upset at Maggie over Beth's course of actions. Beth was just thrilled Daryl was letting her stay the night again. If it were up to her, she'd make it a daily, or rather nightly, occurrence.

It was dusk when they had officially returned, Beth's hair still slightly damp and tangled from swimming in the lake. Daryl tried the door to his apartment and seeing that it was unlocked, he pushed it open and allowed Beth to walk in first.

Jesse was lying on the couch fiddling around with his phone before he noticed them. He sat up with a questioning look. "Where have you two been?"

"Out," Daryl replied with a shrug. He locked the door behind him as Beth smiled at Jesse's eye roll. Daryl apparently didn't like to be informative and Jesse wasn't one to pry if it didn't concern him. At least the two seemed to be fairing okay as roommates. It was still strange to Beth.

"Alright... That's cool. Didn't want specifics anyway."

"Glad we're on the same page." Daryl walked toward his room leaving Beth with Jesse. She figured she was supposed to follow so she did, providing Jesse with a smile before taking off. "Uh, you can shower if you want."

"Okay. That'd be nice." Beth nodded. Daryl handed her a clean shirt and pajama pants to change into before she headed for the bathroom. It felt a little awkward but she figured that was to be expected.

She hopped in the shower and hurried as fast as she could, not wanting to take forever. It was times like these when she hated having such long hair. Once she was finished, she dried off and got dressed into Daryl's clothes before walking out toward the living room area.

"Where's Daryl?" Beth furrowed her brow as she realized it was just her and Jesse.

"Outside. Or should I try and be more vague?" Jesse looked up at her from where he was seated on the couch.

Beth rolled her eyes now as she sat down beside him. "He was just being sarcastic, you know."

"Believe me, I know. I kinda live with him in case you forgot. Sarcasm's big around here." Jesse slightly smirked. "So I guess everything is going good with you two?"

"Yeah. Things are going well." Beth smiled. "How are you and Haley?"

"Good. We're good." Jesse nodded to himself, rubbing a hand across the back of his neck.

Beth sighed. She fixed her gaze down at her bare feet. "I feel like I haven't talked to you in forever... How have you been? The meetings, rehab?"

Since Beth had technically broke into Jesse's old house with Jax and Opie, she and Haley had been trying to get Jesse clean. That responsibility fell more on Haley in the long run and that was probably what truly started their connection. They were seeing each other a lot more frequently after that and now they were dating.

Jesse moved his hand from behind his neck to the crook of his elbow, his eyes following his hand. "About thirty days sober. Probably the best I've ever felt to be honest. I have you, Haley, and Daryl to thank for that."

As if Daryl had heard Jesse talking about him, he came back inside and shut the door behind him. He glanced back and forth between the two. "I call shower then bed. I'm beat." He smirked down at Beth before walking further into the small apartment and heading for the bathroom.

Beth was a little curious what he was doing outside and if it involved a phone call, but when he walked past she could smell smoke on him. He still could have been on the phone though and Beth couldn't help but think it would have had something to do with TM. She'd have to put her worries to rest though—otherwise her paranoia would get the best of her.

Beth placed a hand on Jesse's arm. "I'm glad you're doing okay." She headed for Daryl's room and lay down on the bed. This marked the second time she was staying at his place and it felt a lot more casual and relaxed this time around. She wasn't trying to throw herself at him as she had previously on her birthday.

But as soon as her head hit the pillow, she realized she must have been more tired than she thought.

\- - -

Beth awoke the next morning snuggled against Daryl's shoulder. She suddenly recalled not seeing him before she fell asleep and then realized she fell asleep without him. She felt bad but Daryl apparently didn't mind. At least she didn't wake up alone again.

Beth carefully propped herself up on her elbow and leaned over to kiss Daryl on the cheek. When she leaned back she noticed Daryl was now awake and looking back at her with a tiny smirk.

"Good morning." Beth smiled. "You are a really light sleeper."

"Yeah, sometimes." Daryl rubbed his eyes before turning his attention back to Beth. "Nice bed head."

Beth crawled out of bed and quickly tried to run her hands through her hair. Since Daryl had also gotten out of bed, she noticed his hair was disheveled too. "Right back at you."

Daryl shrugged while trying to pat his hair down but gave up shortly after. They left the bedroom and walked out toward the kitchen shortly after to find that Jesse was already awake—and by the looks of it, had been awake for a while.

"What's all of this?" Daryl was the first to ask. Jesse was sliding some eggs from out of the skillet onto a plate with a tortilla. There were three plates prepared.

"Breakfast. Huevos rancheros," Jesse replied.

"Alright... What's the catch?" Daryl leaned against the counter.

Jesse handed a plate to him. "You seriously think I'm trying to bribe you with breakfast?"

"Kinda, yeah." Daryl grabbed a fork and slightly poked at the food before him.

"I went to the store the other day and I thought this sounded good. _Sue me_." Jesse handed a plate to Beth.

"It smells good. Looks good too." Beth grabbed a fork herself and moved for the table. "Thanks, Jesse."

"You're welcome. Glad someone can just appreciate a little breakfast without questioning my motives." Jesse shot Daryl a look.

They sat down to eat and things were pretty silent from there on out. Beth thanked Jesse again for breakfast before getting dressed. Daryl walked her out to her car after.

"Thanks for, well, everything." Beth found herself staring at the small Teller-Morrow patch on Daryl's shirt. She still had so many questions, things she didn't understand. She wanted to know _everything_. But she also didn't want to push it. She figured any normal girl would have run after the mentioning of guns, yet here she was. She wanted to keep things as ordinary as possible.

Beth wrapped her arms around him in a hug and kissed him before she got into her car to head home. Whether he would admit it or not, she could tell he was starting to loosen up around her. And for that, she was glad.

\- - -

Daryl opted to drive his motorcycle to work once Beth had left. He pulled into TM and got his bike parked before he noticed a vehicle that seemed out of place from the usual. He glanced over toward the garage and that's when he was able to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Beth's sister was there. Maggie. And she was talking to Jax.

Daryl hid his smirk as he walked over to the two. They were both smiling coyly until Jax saw Daryl coming, Maggie's back to him. Once Maggie noticed Jax's attention had been averted, she turned around.

"Hey—" Maggie tucked her hair behind her ears and forced a smile. "I was just asking Jax if he had seen you or Beth around."

"Yeah, she should be home by now." Daryl figured he'd play along. He knew Beth had told her sister that she was with him. Therefore, Maggie wasn't looking for Beth. She seemed to be looking for an excuse to show up at TM.

"Good to know. I…guess I'll just head home then." Maggie glanced back at Jax before she started walking out toward her vehicle.

Daryl looked to Jax. His eyes were glued on Maggie as she was walking away and Daryl was waiting for him to go after her. Jax mouthed shut up and shook his head before doing just that, already well aware what Daryl was thinking.

Daryl watched, his arms crossed in front of his chest where he stood in the garage just as Jax caught Maggie after she started the engine. She put her window down and Jax had a hand resting on top of the SUV as they spoke. About a minute later, Jax was back at Daryl's side and Maggie had left.

"Don't even say it."

"Wasn't gonna say nothin'. Just that she wasn't lookin' for Beth." Daryl rubbed his chin. Maybe it was a little weird that his closest friend was talking to Beth's sister but hell, Jax deserved it. "She even got a clue you got a kid? Let alone this shit storm in itself…"

"No, but that's not exactly the first thing out of my mouth when I meet someone either. I'll tell her about Abel if things change. You tell Beth about all this?"

"Very briefly. No details. Maybe in time." Daryl shrugged. "So you plan on pursuin' Maggie?"

Jax held up a scratch sheet of paper. "I got her number, didn't I?"

Daryl could only smirk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is dragging unfortunately, and I am well aware. I think my brain is (finally) shot from all this fan fiction business. But hopefully, crossing my fingers, the next two chapters will be a lot better. And maybe I can get myself out of this rut. Thanks for still hanging in there and for all of your support, guys.


	34. Chapter 34

A/N: Hooray for fast updates! Just want to say another quick thanks for the support and hopefully y'all like this one.

The next time that Beth went to TM proved to be a whole new experience. A handful of the guys were missing when she got there, Daryl and Jax included. Instead of heading over to the garage she tried the clubhouse. There she found an older man she didn't quite recall along with Gemma. And she was holding an infant boy in her arms.

Beth wasn't sure what to say with some of the guys missing, a stranger, and a baby. Luckily, the older man had made eye contact with Gemma and nodded his head toward Beth. Since the door to the clubhouse was open, Gemma didn't hear her come in nor was she exactly facing her, but the head nod did the trick.

"Hey," Gemma greeted her with a smile. She slightly bounced the little boy in her arms. "What are you doing here?"

"I just thought I'd drop by. It's been a while," Beth explained. "Where…is everyone?"

"They just had some business to tie up. I'm sure they'll be back soon."

Beth nodded. She felt like she should know what was going on, especially Daryl's whereabouts. At least a vague idea of where he was and what he was doing. Maybe she was being self-conscious but she got the vibe that Gemma must be thinking the same thing. Beth hardly ever talked to Daryl on the phone though. She preferred seeing him when possible and talking in person.

"…Whose baby?" Beth wasn't sure whether she should ask or not but she was curious and it wasn't like there was much of anything else to do than strike a conversation. Gemma looked a little too old to be toting a toddler of her own.

"I'm grandma, if that helps." Gemma shifted the boy in her arms. "This is Abel."

Beth forced a smile. "He's cute." She tried to wrap her mind around Jax having a kid. What did that mean? Who was the mother? Tara? But if that was true, and if she left, what mother would leave her child behind? And Jax was flirty with Maggie…

"What are _you_ doing here?" Gemma's voice broke Beth from her thoughts. She looked over to see a blonde woman, most likely in her twenties.

"I was a guest last night." The blonde flicked her hair over her shoulders while a smirk played on her lips. Beth suddenly noticed her eyes locked onto her own and flitted over her like she was judging her place. Beth also didn't miss the quick glance Gemma gave her like this all had something to do with her.

"Whose?" Gemma inquired. She handed Abel over to the older man who was seated at the bar. Once she was hands free, she placed her hands on her hips.

"I don't think that's any of your business."

"You should make it my business." Gemma took a step closer to the woman in a threatening manner. "I don't take too kindly to little bitches who think they own the place."

Beth was slowly starting to put the pieces together. This woman was claiming to have been a "guest" last night. She didn't enter the room with a guy, meaning he was either still stowed away within the confines of the clubhouse or he wasn't there at all. And she didn't seem all too appealing—attractive but almost a ditzy quality to her.

Beth had a feeling she was staring at a one night stand. And that was the minimum.

"Get out," Gemma warned.

The blonde crossed her arms and shifted her weight so that her hip jutted out to the right. She rolled her lips while she looked Beth over again before turning back to Gemma. With a roll of her eyes, she turned on her heels and headed back down the hall in the direction she had come from.

"What was that?" Beth stared at Gemma while the woman took Abel back.

"Ima. One of the many home wrecking strippers." Gemma sighed. She must have noticed the panic on Beth's face, or the lack of color as Beth felt her blood run cold, because she continued. "When was the last time you talked to him?"

It took Beth a minute to register Gemma's words. "I don't know. A couple days."

"You have nothing to worry about, sweetheart. Daryl's not the one."

Beth wanted to ask her how she would know. She was already feeling uneasy about all of this SAMCRO stuff and whatever Gemma had meant by the guys tying up business. Now she shows up at TM and there's a _stripper_ that had spent the night? Daryl wouldn't sleep with her on her birthday and she was certain he lost his V card a long time ago. Add to that the fact that he didn't seem to have ever been in a relationship before. The more Beth thought about it, the more she felt Gemma was wrong…

A roar of motorcycles broke her thought process this time. Beth found herself staring at Gemma as if she was waiting for an answer to a question she didn't even ask before she started moving toward the door and outside. There she found what she had been waiting for. Daryl, Jax, Opie, and Chibs were back.

Beth didn't think anything through after that. She just started making her way over to Daryl. And by the look on his face, he was surprised to see her there.

"Hey—" Daryl had just lit a cigarette. The guys were still by his side seeing as they didn't leave just yet. "…Somethin' wrong?"

Beth shot a look at Jax. It was enough for him to get the picture and usher everyone away to leave her alone with Daryl as they all headed for the clubhouse. She tried to be rational and tried to give herself a moment to think things through before she opened her mouth but her insecurities were suddenly getting the best of her. "Where were you last night?"

Daryl furrowed his brow. "Excuse me?"

"Where were you last night," Beth repeated a little slower.

"Where I always am. Home." Daryl took a drag, slightly narrowing his eyes at Beth. "What's this all about?"

"So you didn't have a one night stand with a stripper?" Beth just came right out with it. She bit her tongue shortly after. She realized then that she was most likely making an ass out of herself. She trusted Daryl yet she was questioning him. He had never given her a reason to distrust him.

Daryl threw his cigarette down and smashed it with the tip of his boot. "Let me guess… Ima's still here?" When Beth didn't answer his question, he decided to answer hers with a sigh. "I told you. I wasn't here last night."

"Then who?" Beth demanded.

"Jesus Christ… Opie, alright?" Daryl crossed his arms. "Why the hell would you think it was me?"

Beth looked away from Daryl and found her stare being trained on his motorcycle. She felt stupid for accusing Daryl but she needed to know. "You won't have sex with me—"

Daryl grabbed her by her arms making her look back at him. "I ain't with anybody else."

"But you've slept with a stripper before?" Beth assumed this wasn't the first time a stripper had shown up at TM, especially since Daryl knew her name. Another fact that didn't comfort her.

Daryl took his hands back while taking a step back. He seemed a little uncomfortable with the confrontation. A little hesitant to answer. But he slowly nodded. "Yeah."

"Was it her?" Beth was finding it harder to hide the emotion in her voice, tears started to form in her eyes.

"No. I've never been with her and I'm not sleeping with anyone currently. Okay?"

Beth could tell he was starting to get a little ticked off with all the questions but he was trying to hide his emotions as well. "Then why won't you have sex with me? Is it because you have an STD or something?"

"No— _hell_ no. Fuck…" He shook his head before rubbing his face. He glanced over at the garage before looking back over at the clubhouse. "Just…c'mon."

Daryl very briefly gazed at Beth before he started walking toward the clubhouse. And Beth followed, seeing no other choice in the matter. She didn't want to give up and she had gotten all the answers she wanted. She thought that anger was usually a person's way of hiding something but she was certain Daryl was telling the truth. He wouldn't lie about any of that. Beth had to remind herself who Daryl was—he wasn't some scumbag guy and he probably had more insecurities than she did. But she was none too thrilled to be heading for the clubhouse with this Ima chick being there.

Daryl led the way through the clubhouse, ignoring everyone who was there, and turned down the hall. Beth wasn't sure where he was taking her and they didn't stop until they reached a type of ladder that was built into the wall. He started climbing his way up so Beth just kept following. He offered her a hand up once he was on his feet and it took Beth a moment to register that they were on the rooftop.

Daryl walked toward the corner and sat down facing out toward the parking lot, his feet resting on the small wall of concrete that lined the roof. Had it not been for that concrete wall, Beth would have felt a little uneasy being that high up. She sat down next to him but remained quiet. And they just sat there for a couple minutes staring down at the cars before Daryl shifted, pulling a small box from his pocket.

Beth stared at it, her heart suddenly racing. The first thought that popped into her mind was that he was about to propose to her. Because there was definitely some sort of jewelry in that container. But that was just crazy…

Daryl cleared his throat. "I was originally gonna give this to ya on your birthday… I talked to Tara before she left and she said that even though you didn't want anything, you really did. I didn't give it to you then because I wasn't sure about everything, where it would go. Then it never felt like it was the right time…" He handed the small box over to her.

Beth was shocked. She wasn't even sure if "shocked" was the correct term. He had asked Tara about her? She opened the box, the top springing open, and found herself staring down at a silver necklace with two outlines of a heart, a smaller one inside the other. And suddenly the tears that reappeared in her eyes were from a whole different feeling.

Beth kept a hold of the necklace as she wrapped her arms around Daryl and hugged him. "I'm sorry. I just—I'm sorry." Daryl placed an arm around her as she sat back up straight, one arm around him and the other wiping the tears from her face. "I've just been worried and—"

"Don't be," Daryl cut her off.

Beth smiled. Even though she didn't know everything she'd like to know, she figured she'd learn it all in time. There was a lot to learn and a lot to catch up on. Daryl had already proved that he'd open up more and discuss things. She already knew that he wasn't the one involved with the stripper before she had jumped to conclusions. Her brain was just rattled and she needed to take a step back to really process everything. Daryl wouldn't do anything to hurt her.

"Thank you." Beth got the necklace out of the contraption. It took her a couple tries before she was able to successfully fasten the clasp behind her neck, removing the box from her lap and placing it down by their feet. She leaned over and kissed Daryl on the cheek.

Daryl nodded. "I'm all yours."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I believe this is where I'm supposed to throw in a warning and tell you that the rating is going up after this chapter. Just to be on the safe side. Because reasons.


	35. Chapter 35

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: the idea for the necklace came from the show. I thought that'd make for an interesting twist. So now when you watch the show, you can pretend Daryl gave it to her. Haha. ;)

Beth knew she had to make her move. She had to make it because Daryl wasn't going to. They always say you have to work for what you want and that was exactly what Beth planned to do. It had to be now, no matter how much she appreciated Daryl wanting to wait.

As soon as Daryl had locked his apartment door and turned to face her, Beth pushed him up against it, her lips crashing with his. She was not about to let some stripper take her place in a role she hadn't quite found her comfort zone in. At least she hadn't found it yet. Beth had to summon the fierce side of her and allow those thoughts to fuel her. She wasn't going to let Daryl end up like Opie.

Beth had pulled him into her closer as she could feel him fighting back. She had taken control of the situation and she could almost feel the tension in his shoulders from being caught off guard all the while their kiss progressed. She bit his lip as her fingers fumbled across his chest, only stopping when she had reached the buttons to his shirt and started to undo them. She successfully reached the final button before she pushed the shirt back off his shoulders and he took his hands back long enough to toss the article of clothing to the floor. The only time their mouths left one another was when Daryl ran his hands under her shirt and pulled it over her head, her top long forgotten with his as they both stumbled their way toward the bedroom.

Once they had reached their destination, Beth took control again. She grabbed for his belt and unfastened it before shoving him onto the bed. Her heart was racing in her chest. Her head was slightly pounding. She was shocked at her own behavior but when her eyes met Daryl's and she noticed the smirk on his lips it only pushed her more.

"This whole innocent vibe you've had goin'... I'm not sure I believe it anymore," Daryl joked.

Beth didn't say anything in response. She just stared down at him, unsure of where to really go next. As long as she didn't allow herself to think too much, or at all, she was fine. She had to switch off the part of her brain that was screaming at her, telling her that this was uncalled for. She didn't have to do anything. She didn't have to go through with it. She trusted him with or without sex in the picture.

But that didn't stop her from grabbing his pants and wrestling them off him.

Daryl jumped back to his feet afterward and without warning, he practically picked her up and tossed her on the bed now. Beth gasped, not expecting that, as she was lying on her back staring up at the ceiling. She felt Daryl's hands working the button of her jeans undone while he kissed her stomach. He was taking his time and the feel of his facial hair tickled her. She couldn't suppress the tiny giggle that escaped her lips when Daryl drove his tongue into her navel.

Beth helped to slightly kick her jeans off from around her ankles. Once that realization set in, that she was down to the bare minimum, she felt her heart rate spike. She just had to remind herself that this wasn't the first time Daryl had seen her this exposed, not to mention he was going to see everything shortly anyway.

She scooted herself back more on the bed before reaching out and grabbing Daryl by the wrist. She gave him a firm tug which led to him climbing onto the bed himself. His eyes met hers once again as he straddled her. But Beth could see it in his face, the look he was giving her. He was questioning her much like he had on her birthday, only things weren't going to come to a screeching halt like they had then.

Beth waited a pause before she nodded, mindlessly tracing her fingers over the necklace he had given her only earlier that day. She already knew this was what she wanted and nothing was going to ease her fear except to go for it.

Daryl nodded in return. He seemed to accept her approval this time because he didn't say a word. He just got right to it.

Daryl cupped her face before their lips crashed together once more. Beth found her hands resting on the sides of his neck just below his jaw as she writhed under him, working to get her legs free as they shifted around. She hooked her left leg behind his right knee while she planted her right foot down on the bed, her leg bent with her knee in the air. She wasn't quite sure how to position herself and the more she tried to think about it, the more focus she lost on the kiss—her tongue tangling with his and gliding over his lips effortlessly. But Daryl already started to move himself, trailing down her neck and gently nibbling on her flesh. His hands traveled just the same as one stopped just below her bra line and the other rested on her leg, his thumb caressing her inner thigh.

Beth sank down into the bed a little further from her half sitting position. What he was doing to her neck alone was doing wonders, goosebumps prickling her skin. Then he moved both of his hands to her thighs, slowly and ever so gently trailing up and down the inside. One of her hands made it to the back of his head, running through his hair while the other landed on his bicep. She buried her face into the side of his neck and closed her eyes, placing small kisses and tiny bites alike. It was when she felt Daryl run a finger over her that she bit his neck a little harder than anticipated. Only this time she wasn't stopping him. This time, he only reciprocated a low moan.

As Daryl kept at it, Beth felt her face flush. She tried to stifle her own moan as her hands now ran over his back, her nails slightly digging into his skin. She felt like she could breathe again once Daryl brought his lips back to hers. She quickly replaced her hands in his hair all while he returned the favor, his hands getting tangled in her mess of blonde. He pulled her hair down from the ponytail and tossed the hair tie before he started running his hands down her body. Beth felt them slip under her as he unfastened her bra, her face feeling like it was on fire. He pulled back long enough to look her in the eyes and catch the inevitable blush that had crept across her face. She knew he was still questioning her so she nodded and slipped her arms free from the straps, tossing it onto the floor.

They continued making out as Beth ran her hands over Daryl's shoulders, his hands running down her sides. His thumbs trailed over her breasts until he started kissing down the side of her neck and stopped with a kiss in the center of her chest. When he unexpectedly took her in his mouth, Beth gasped. She pushed her head back further into the bed and involuntarily pressed her chest at him. He kept moving lower until he reached the last of her clothing she was wearing and slowly pulled them down. Beth wriggled out of them and let out a half whimper once Daryl delved a finger into her. He lightly bit at her nipple, receiving another strangled whimper out of Beth and getting a groan out of Daryl. She slightly twitched when she felt him try another finger. Then he had started to rub her.

Beth gasped. Her hand shot out and gripped him by his hair, her hips naturally thrusting forward. He grasped her by her thighs in that moment and carefully massaged her with his thumbs before dipping his tongue down and giving her a couple licks.

" _Daryl_ —" Beth tightened her grip on his hair feeling as though she were about to pull it from his scalp. Her legs were shaking and in just that short amount of time, she thought she was going to start begging him to actually stop. It felt unbelievable good but she felt paralyzed, unable to move as she pressed herself into the bed even further.

Once Daryl stopped, she tried to catch her breath. Her eyes remained shut and she hadn't even noticed the shift of weight on the bed as Daryl left. She opened her eyes when she felt him return. He was fully unclothed himself now and Beth's face flushed even more once her eyes landed on his erection as he was putting a condom on. She looked up at him and their eyes met but neither said a word.

Beth grabbed a hold of his arms in a vice-like grip once he slowly started to enter her, her eyes shut tight. Her breath hitched as her body felt like it forgot how to function.

"Just breathe," Daryl reminded her. She felt a hand on her face as he wiped away a tear with his thumb. She hadn't even realized she was silently crying.

Beth clenched up before she knew it. Like her body was trying to reject what was about to happen—what was happening. Daryl hovered over her, his face buried in her neck now as he let out a partial groan. She could feel his breath on her neck.

"Try an' relax… It'll hurt less," Daryl murmured.

Beth nodded, her eyes still clamped shut. She was breathing heavy, her body twitching. She bit her lip to prevent herself from crying out the further Daryl pushed in. It wouldn't surprise her if she had drawn blood on Daryl's arms since she couldn't bring herself to completely relax, her grip still quite firm.

She released his arms and grabbed him by his hair, forcefully pulling his lips to hers. She needed a distraction and she was being anything but gentle with the way she moved her lips and tongue. Beth thrust her hips forward, biting Daryl's lip harder than necessary as pain and euphoria washed over her. She found a steady rhythm with him as she moaned into his mouth. Daryl's hands gripped her hips as she draped her arms around his neck, pulling herself up a little with him.

This was it. This was what she wanted. She's with Daryl. She wasn't going to end up as some forty year old virgin that was too afraid to ever commit to someone. Maybe she should have waited a little longer but a part of her felt like she couldn't. She needed to prove to herself she could do it. She had fallen for Daryl. She trusted him. And she knew that she wouldn't regret it after the fact.

After a while, no matter how hard Beth was trying to hold on, she lost it. She shuddered as her body finally started to relax entirely. The only sounds that filled the room at that moment were the panting breaths belonging to the both of them.

Daryl planted a soft kiss on her forehead as her eyes flickered open. He brushed some of her hair from her face before he kissed her lips, Beth wrapping her arms back around him. As far as she was concerned, she could die happy now.


	36. Chapter 36

Beth awoke the next morning bright and early curled up with Daryl. Her head was resting on his shoulder with an arm stretched out over his bare chest. He looked as if he was still asleep and she couldn't help but smile. Yesterday felt like a dream but since she woke up next to him and she realized she was only wearing her underwear and his shirt, she knew it was all real. It just didn't feel real—Beth Greene was no longer a virgin.

Beth lifted her head just enough to kiss Daryl on the cheek and rest her head back down on his shoulder. His eyes remained shut but a smirk passed his lips, letting her know that he was awake. She then dropped off of his shoulder as he shifted around and ended up lying on his side to face her. Their eyes connected briefly just before he leaned in and kissed her on the lips.

"You're right. 'Bout what you said," Daryl spoke softly.

"What do you mean?" Beth racked her brain for anything she had said recently that would trigger Daryl to say that.

"What you said back when you walked into Jake's… I've never been in an actual relationship." Daryl rolled to his back again and rubbed his face. "The thought of all this—you an' me…"

"There's nothing wrong with that." If anything, Beth felt even happier knowing she was the first girl to break through to Daryl completely. It made her feel accomplished. She was technically helping him, getting him to open up if only a little. Making him feel whole.

"Maybe. It's just… It makes me nervous."

"Why?" She watched for any sort of reaction out of him but received nothing. She couldn't read him.

"I'm afraid I'm gonna end up hurtin' you somehow. I don't know."

"You're never going to end up hurting me," Beth encouraged with a smile. "Don't worry about that."

Daryl vaguely nodded and shut his eyes. Beth just let the silence fill the room for the time being while she collected her thoughts. She wondered what he really meant by that. Did he think he, personally, was going to hurt her somehow? Did this have something to do with whatever business he was involved in? She wanted to ask him to clarify further, to ask more about all this SAMCRO stuff. She wanted to know what she was truly dealing with. She also wanted to know what was going on with her sister and Jax, if anything was even going on at all. Maggie hadn't really been saying much of anything.

So she figured she'd change the subject and ask anyway.

"Is there something going on between Jax and my sister?"

Daryl turned his head to look at her, confused. "I'm not really sure? Your sister was at TM the other day supposedly lookin' for you but she knew you were with me. They talked. Apparently exchanged numbers."

"They exchanged numbers?" Beth wasn't even aware Maggie had gone to TM. Of course they seemed a little flirty on the Fourth of July, but she didn't really think they'd continue talking. "But Jax has a kid?"

Beth found herself sitting up in bed without even realizing it causing Daryl to sit up as well, the blanket falling to their waists.

"Yeah?" Daryl questioned. "You're worried about your sister."

Beth nodded. She was afraid to say anymore, afraid she would say the wrong thing.

"He's not involved with the mother or anything," Daryl clarified.

"Who is the mother?"

Daryl sighed. "He was married for a short time. She was a junkie. Long story short, she's off in some rehabilitation facility."

"He was married?" Beth shook her head in disbelief. What more could she possibly learn to blow her mind? Gun running gang business, screwed up families, strippers, failed marriages…

"I'm startin' to get the vibe that when your family wants somethin', they go after it." Daryl got out of bed and grabbed a shirt to throw on since he was only wearing his pants. "You're a pretty damn determined girl if ya ask me."

Beth smiled at that as she got out of bed herself. She grabbed her pants and slipped them on. "I guess you could say that. They say you can do anything you set your mind to, right?"

"Is that what you were thinkin' yesterday?"

She quickly glanced over at him at his words and bit her lip when she saw him smiling. "It might have been something like that."

Daryl exited from the bedroom and Beth followed his lead out into the hall and toward the living room area. She was glad they picked their shirts up last night before Jesse returned. It was at least one awkward situation avoided.

Beth was a little shocked to see that Jesse wasn't up and moving before either of them, seeing as he had made breakfast the last time she spent the night. She was even more shocked when she had stepped past the kitchen and saw that Jesse was lying on the floor rather than the couch.

She exchanged glances with Daryl thinking that maybe he had an explanation. It was pretty late by the time they had gone to sleep and Jesse still hadn't returned. Now he was lying on his side on the floor facing the couch, unaware of their approach.

Daryl sighed, providing Beth with the idea of what he must have been thinking too: Jesse was either drunk or he had backslid. He was wearing a zip up hoodie, the hood up and covering his head.

"Jesse." Daryl nudged his lower back with his foot and received a low groan. "Wake up."

Beth remained standing where she was, keeping a bit of distance. She suddenly felt concerned that something was wrong. And apparently she wasn't alone because Daryl had unexpectedly gotten down on his knees and slowly rolled Jesse onto his back.

"Shit…" Daryl mumbled. Beth found herself inching forward to see and she clasped a hand over her mouth before she could gasp. Jesse hadn't backslid and he wasn't drunk—someone had deliberately beat him up.

"Jesus Christ—don't touch me." Jesse visibly cringed at the movement, his eyes clamped shut. Otherwise, the rest of his body remained still. "Son of a bitch…"

"What the hell happened to you?" Daryl questioned. He kept his hands off and away from Jesse, unsure of how badly he was injured.

"I—I don't know."

"What d'ya mean you don't know?"

"Daryl," Beth warned. She got down on her knees by Jesse's head after she had spotted some blood in his hair, the hood having fallen slightly when Daryl rolled him onto his back. She pointed it out to Daryl in hopes that he would give Jesse some credit. If he had been hit in the head with something hard enough to draw blood, it could cause some memory loss.

"It was dark. And there was like, two or three guys," Jesse explained. He shakily raised an arm to touch his face and Beth quickly grabbed his hand to stop him.

"Don't," Beth advised. She released his hand and he gingerly rested it across his chest. His left eye was pretty swollen, his lip was split, and he had a bloody nose. She cringed in pain for him. "Why didn't you wake us up?"

"I was lucky to have made it as far as I did in the first place. Passed out."

"Think you can move?" Daryl inquired.

"Do I have to?" Jesse opened his right eye and stared up at Daryl.

"Gotta get you to the hospital somehow, don't I?" Daryl switched his gaze to Beth and she sensed he was questioning what she was going to do.

"I'm going with you." She didn't have to be home at any certain time. She could just call and give her family a heads up that it'd be a while. This was more important than getting home.

Beth ran back to the bedroom and changed into her own shirt, making sure to grab her cell phone before joining Daryl's side again. Daryl had tried to help Jesse to his feet but it only ended with a pained yelp. A second attempt and he almost had him on his feet but he immediately started to collapse. Beth didn't even get a chance to try and help before Daryl ultimately scooped him up and carried him, one arm supporting his back, the other behind his knees.

"Grab my keys off the counter and get the door."

\- - -

Jesse had passed out once they made it out to the parking lot and got him into Daryl's truck. Beth sat in the passenger seat with an arm around him so that he was leaning against her while Daryl drove. She called home on the drive to the hospital to let her dad know it'd probably be a while before she came home but she didn't give him a reason why.

It was absolutely silent the entire drive and Daryl had pulled up just outside the emergency entrance to the hospital. He told her to stay put with Jesse before he took off and disappeared through the automatic sliding doors.

Beth stared at the dashboard, her mind racing. She wanted answers just as much as Daryl did but they both knew they'd have to give it some time. Neither of them were even sure how bad Jesse was. Beth could only assume he was pretty banged up considering he was completely out of it and he couldn't walk.

She could see Daryl and two hospital personnel coming towards her with a wheelchair from the corner of her eye but she startled when she heard a sniffle. It took her a minute to realize Jesse was conscious and crying.

"I messed up…" Jesse quietly sobbed into her shoulder. "I messed up… I'm sorry."

"What do you mean you messed up? Messed up how?—you didn't mess anything up, Jesse," Beth tried to console him.

The passenger door opened then and Jesse's left arm wrapped around her. She hugged him in return and looked back to Daryl and the two nurses. She was now close to tears herself, completely confused yet hurting for Jesse. There wasn't anything she or Daryl could do for him at the moment other than let the nurses take him and wait for some kind of news.

"We're at the hospital, okay?" Beth informed him. She could feel him slightly nod his head before she looked back to Daryl again. She slowly released Jesse and slid out of the truck and into Daryl's arms while the nurses assisted Jesse. They were able to get him out of the truck and into the wheelchair without too much difficulty. Then they wheeled him off and Daryl had to park his truck in an actual parking space, out of the way of ambulances that would come and go.

Beth stayed by Daryl's side. They both sat in the waiting room, two additional bodies to add to the three others who were there on account of someone else. Daryl chewed on his thumb as they both stared mindlessly at the wall. Neither knew what to say. After yesterday's events and then waking up to find Jesse in the condition that he was in—it was just unbelievable.

Beth grabbed Daryl's hand away from his mouth causing him to look at her. She laced her fingers with his and leaned against his shoulder. She was well aware that Jesse had his own problems that he was dealing with but she was certain that was all taken care of.

Part of her wanted to ask Daryl if this had anything to do with SAMCRO. The other part was too afraid to ask.


	37. Chapter 37

Twenty minutes had passed in silence between Beth and Daryl. A small television was tuned in to some news broadcast in the corner of the room. The combined noises of it along with the shuffling of feet, beeping of electronic equipment, and the automatic sliding door opening and shutting had practically become muted to Beth. It all felt like some distant dream.

She imagined Daryl must have felt the same way. He was far more fidgety than usual, his leg slightly bouncing, and he had resorted to chewing on his other thumb since Beth had robbed him of his right hand.

There hadn't been any news. No one had consulted with either of them on Jesse's condition or what could have possibly happened—not that any of the hospital staff would be able to tell them that anyway. The only person who knew what happened was Jesse, and it didn't seem like they were going to learn a whole lot more unless his memory started to come back to him.

Another ten minutes passed and Daryl explained to Beth that he was going to give Jax a heads up as to what was going on since he and Jesse were supposed to work today. He squeezed her hand before departing, heading back outside through the automatic doors.

And after a couple minutes, Beth couldn't handle sitting there alone. She thought about calling Maggie just for someone to talk to. Maggie could always cheer her up. That was something she was in desperate need of by this point. But as she found herself walking outside with her cell phone in hand, she realized then who she really needed to call.

Beth walked a little ways away from the doors after having spotted Daryl sitting on the tailgate of his truck smoking a cigarette. He was still on the phone so she shook her head to let him know that there wasn't any word yet. She allowed him to have his privacy and took a seat on the curb before flipping her phone open and staring down at the digits.

She had to call Haley.

"Beth, hey," Haley answered on the fourth ring. She sounded a little uncertain. "Is everything okay? It's kinda early for you to be calling me."

Beth immediately found herself at a loss for words. She struggled to even come up with a reply to let Haley know she was still on the line. And the more she thought about it, the more she realized she hadn't really seen Haley in at least over a week.

"I'm sorry, it's just…" Beth bit her lip and stared down at her feet, the receiver pressed firmly to her ear. Had everything gone differently she'd probably start gushing about yesterday's events with Daryl. She'd ask her what she was doing for the day, get together, and get caught up on everything they'd been missing. "Something happened."

"…What do you mean? Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"I'm at the hospital. Its Jesse," Beth regretted to inform her.

There was a moment of silence before Haley responded, "What did he do? What happened?"

"I—we don't know. I was over at Daryl's and we just found him passed out on the floor. He was in pretty bad shape."

"Okay… Okay, I'm coming." Haley hung up before Beth could say any more.

Beth shut her phone and sighed. If she didn't know any better, she'd almost think that Haley seemed a bit indifferent. She figured she'd get an answer to that one as soon as she got there though. Maybe something would start making sense.

Daryl walked over in front of her and caught her attention. He offered her a hand up in which she took, jumping back to her feet. "You alright?"

Beth vaguely nodded. "Haley's on her way."

"You wanna wait for her or you wanna go back in?"

"I'll wait out here." Beth could tell he seemed more at ease outside of the hospital so she figured she'd stay outside for his sake in the meantime. He led the way back over to his truck and they both hopped up onto the tailgate, seeing as he left it down.

"You wanna talk 'bout anything?" Daryl offered.

Beth just shook her head. She appreciated the concern he was showing though. Especially considering he wasn't the talking type. She felt as if their roles had suddenly reversed because now she preferred the silence and Daryl was trying to be talkative.

It wasn't much longer after that when Beth recognized Haley's Ford Escort pull into the parking lot. She absentmindedly slid off the tailgate and started walking toward her car while Daryl gave them some space and stayed back. And as soon as Haley exited from behind the steering wheel, Beth could tell she had been crying, her eyes red.

Haley stared back at Beth, her mouth slightly ajar as she tried to find the words. Beth could tell Haley was already starting to tear back up again just as she closed the gap between them and hugged her.

"How—how is he? Is he okay?" Haley merely whispered into Beth's shoulder.

"We haven't heard anything yet. We decided to wait for you after I called." Beth rubbed her back in a comforting manner before taking a step back.

Haley wiped at her eyes and forced a choked laugh. "We haven't been getting along… I haven't really talked to him in a while. And now this."

"What?" Beth furrowed her brow. This was certainly news to her. "What happened between you two?"

"I don't really wanna talk about it." Haley wrapped her arms around herself and started walking toward the doors.

Beth stood there, dumbfounded, before she started moving herself. Daryl hopped down from the tailgate and shot her a confusing look after seeing Haley take off without her. Beth only shrugged as he accompanied her back into the hospital to continue waiting.

\- - -

Before long, they were the only three sitting in the emergency waiting room. Nobody had said a word since they sat. Beth was staring at Haley trying to figure out what she missed and Daryl was staring at Beth trying to figure out what _he_ missed. In fact, Beth was so trained on trying to read Haley that she didn't notice the brunette woman standing off to the side of them.

"Are you three here for a Jesse... Pinkman?"

The three turned to face the nurse but Beth was the one who found her voice. "Yes. Is he okay?"

"He seems to be doing fine. We've got him in a room now, if you'd like to follow me."

Haley was the first to jump up out of her seat while Beth and Daryl followed. The nurse scanned her badge at the door to allow entry and led the way down the hall. There were multiple hallways that split up and met back together, meeting in almost an awkward circle with rooms all throughout. Beth had never seen this part of the hospital, nor had she really been in one before then.

"We ran a couple scans to check for any internal damage. Good news is that nothing is broken. He has a concussion, few stitches, and some bruising but everything else checks out fine," the nurse explained. "They just want to keep him in the ER a little longer and make sure he's okay, with the head injury. He'll most likely be moved to a different room later today. Outside of the ER."

Beth was relieved to hear that Jesse wasn't seriously injured and that he didn't have any life threatening ailments. By the sounds of it, he probably wouldn't be in the hospital for too long either. Maybe a couple days max.

They came to a stop outside room 324. The nurse slid a blank card into the slot and once it lit up green, she opened the door. She kept it propped open with her back while she faced them, extending her hand with the card. "While he's back here, you'll need this to get in."

Daryl took the card and thanked the woman as she allowed them in. She exited from the room shortly after, leaving the three to spread out around Jesse's bed. He looked about the same as the last time Beth saw him, only he was now in a hospital gown with a sheet over him. There was an IV in his arm and his eye was still pretty swollen, the left side of his face—hell, the left side of his head in general—seemed to have taken the brunt of the blows. He had a few stitches just below his eye and on his scalp, a small patch of his hair having been shaved down.

Haley took to one side of the bed and grabbed Jesse's hand. Beth and Daryl stood opposite of her. The only sound that filled the room at that very moment was the faint beeping coming from the machine reading Jesse's pulse.

"You look like shit," Daryl remarked.

"Yeah? Well, I _feel_ like shit…" Jesse closed his good eye and rested his head back into the pillow. "I got a headache from hell… My ribs hurt. But they said nothing's broken. Pain meds are helping though."

"But what happened?" Haley placed her other hand over Jesse's, sandwiching his between both of hers.

Jesse turned his head enough so that he could look at her since she was standing on his bad side. He looked shocked to see her there. "I, uh…" He shifted slightly, cringing. "I don't know. I don't remember… It was just, like, two guys or some shit. It might've been Emilio and Krazy-8."

"Who?" Beth questioned. She glanced back and forth between Haley and Jesse. Maybe all of this had something to do with why Haley hadn't been talking to him.

"His drug dealers," Haley muttered in a bitter tone.

"They're not my—" Jesse stopped himself. "They're not dealers, they're distributors."

"Same difference."

"No… There's a difference. Besides, I'm done with all that. I don't even know for sure if it was them."

"Alright," Daryl spoke up, breaking up the little feud between the two. "So, what you're sayin' is that you have no clue what happened? No clue who attacked you?"

Jesse sighed. "Right. All I know is that it was late when I left my friend's place and I was either followed or they were waiting for me because as soon as I parked my car, they jumped me."

"This happened in the parking lot?" Beth was floored. It made Jesse's apparent attack that much more frightening having happened in the parking lot of the apartment complex. "But who would do that?"

"I don't know, alright?" Jesse groaned. He sunk down into the bed even more than he was before and shut his eye.

Beth could tell there was some sort of unresolved conflict between Haley and Jesse. They both seemed almost agitated with one another and Haley took her hands back after Jesse's last statement. She figured they needed some alone time to talk things over and since Jesse was okay, she'd give them that.

She explained that her and Daryl were going to leave and they'd come back later to check up on him and keep him company. Daryl didn't say much on the topic and Haley only stared back at them. Beth shot Haley a bewildered look before exiting from the room, hoping that she'd hear from her at some point with an explanation as to what was going on.

 _Somebody_ had some explaining to do.


	38. Chapter 38

By the time Beth had returned home it was going on noon. She quickly learned that her mom and Maggie had gone out for a while and Shawn was gone too, leaving her with just her dad. She could already see it in his face that he wasn't pleased with her unexplained absence.

"Care to explain where you've been all morning?" Hershel started.

Beth tried not to think too much about the question. The more she thought about it, the more she thought about last night—and that was the last thing her dad needed to hear. "A friend of mine was in an accident. We took him to the hospital."

"Who's we?" He took a sip of his coffee and set the mug down on the dining room table before directing his full attention back to her.

"Me and Daryl…" Beth lowered her voice.

Hershel nodded slightly. "And what's this accident?"

Beth only blinked a few times, figuring he would go on about her bad decisions, before she came up with a response. "…We don't know. He was hurt. It looked like… someone beat him up." There was no way she could avoid the truth with her dad. He'd eventually find out somehow and she wouldn't be able to keep up with all the lies if she tried to go that path. She didn't want to lie.

"This is exactly the reason why I don't want you hanging out with any of the Dixons. You've gotten yourself tied up with this man and now I have to fear that something's going to happen."

"Nothing's going to happen to me, daddy. I'm okay. And Daryl's okay. You met him, remember? He's not some disrespectful kind of guy," Beth tried. "I know you know that. You can tell he's not."

"Regardless, it doesn't make me feel any better." Hershel looked back at her with a sort of sadness in his eyes. "I know you're growing up and I can't always be there to tell you what to do. I just don't want you making any decisions you'll come to regret."

Beth was shocked that he was being so open about everything. He really was trying to accept Daryl—or at least accept that she was growing up. She had to make her own decisions.

She stepped forward and hugged her father. "I'm sorry if I worry you. You just have to trust me."

He hugged her back. "It's not you that I have a problem trusting."

\- - -

Beth decided it best to stay home the rest of the day to ease her father's troubled mind. She figured she'd go back to the hospital first thing tomorrow to go check up on Jesse and give him some company. She also wanted to give Daryl a little bit of space and not be too suffocating. But she figured she'd probably give him a call at least at some point.

Just as Beth grabbed her laptop to turn on some music, her phone rang. She set the laptop on her bed and pulled her phone from her pocket. It was Haley.

"Hey," Beth answered. She wasn't sure if she should say anymore than that to start off with so she stuck with the single syllable.

"Hey… Are you home? I was hoping to talk to you in person."

"Yeah. Um, come on over." And that had been the extent of that conversation before Haley hung up.

Beth shut her phone and placed it on her bed next to her computer. She wasn't too sure what to expect when Haley would arrive. She tried not to think about it but it didn't stop her from checking her bedroom window every few minutes to see if Haley's car was parked out front. The anticipation of what was to come was killing her.

It was about half an hour later when Beth heard a faint crunching of tires on gravel that she rushed back to the window. She climbed downstairs and out to the porch where she met Haley. They shared in a quick hug before Beth led the way back upstairs to her room and shut the door behind them.

"I'm sorry I haven't kept in contact with you like I should have," Haley began. She at least looked a little better, more composed, since Beth had seen her that morning.

"We're both guilty of that. It's not all on you," Beth admitted.

Haley sighed. "I've missed you. And our gossip time." She forced a laugh and Beth smiled. Then she shook her head as if in disbelief. "I messed up."

Beth suddenly recalled Jesse having said those three exact words earlier. "What do you mean?"

"What happened between me and Jesse. Just everything." Haley sat down on the edge of Beth's bed. She was a little hesitant to continue. "This is going to sound absolutely ridiculous but… he told me he loved me."

Beth furrowed her brow. "How is that a bad thing?"

"Because we've only been dating for a couple months. How can he know whether he loves me or not? He barely knows me." Haley paused before continuing, "I just got defensive and I told him that. I don't know… I just kinda hate that word. It's like guys say it to you to try and brainwash you, like they expect that's what you want to hear."

"Jesse isn't necessarily like other guys though, Haley. You can't compare him to your exes."

"I know. But… I felt so bad afterward. He looked so torn. All I could do was apologize. I don't even know if I truly meant it. It just… scared me, I guess."

Beth could only nod as Haley continued:

"Then I thought that he had… backslid. Is that the word? I thought he started using again. But I was wrong. I was so worked up and paranoid about it ever since… I never asked him though, I just assumed. And you know me. I kept it bottled up, so when the next time came that I felt he was using… I kinda exploded."

"Why did you think he was using?"

"He always seemed so fidgety. And the friends that he hangs out with… He almost backslid a couple times before. He told me when he was thinking about it and I had to talk him out of it. Back when Daryl told him about his real dad. I mean, what the hell was Daryl thinking anyway? It wasn't any of his business…"

Beth bit her lip before she could lash out and defend Daryl. Haley had a point, but Daryl wouldn't deliberately do that to Jesse to try and mess with him. "I'm sure he meant well…"

"It all started with him getting kicked out of his aunt's house. All of that put a lot of stress on him. And then he thought our argument was his fault. I feel like I'm walking on eggshells. I don't want to say the wrong thing to him. And now with him in the hospital, I feel like he might have done something stupid because of me." Haley wiped at her eyes before she could start crying. "It's taken me all this time to realize that he's never had someone to care about him."

Beth involuntarily pulled Haley into a hug. She hadn't thought about it like that. And it was so strange to think that Daryl and Jesse were actually related, and how similar they truly were. They both needed someone in their lives that could show them love because they'd never really had anyone before either of them. She could see the change in Daryl since they had become closer.

"Everything will be okay. I called you and let you know what was going on. You showed up. That means something," Beth assured her. "He knows you care."

Haley nodded while taking a step back and breaking the embrace. "I'm sorry for coming over and making a fool of myself… I just needed to get it out of my system."

"You're fine." Beth forced a smile. "I'd rather you come over crying and getting everything out of your system than beating yourself up over it."

"I'm gonna go back up to the hospital whenever I leave here." Haley wiped at her eyes again and took a deep breath, exhaling. "How have you been? How are you and Daryl? You guys look good."

"I've been okay. And we're doing well." Beth nodded. She didn't really think going into full detail was the appropriate action at the moment. Not until things were at least a bit more settled.

Haley smiled. "That's good."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have officially started a companion fic to go with this story, titled ["Fix Me (Side B)"](http://archiveofourown.org/works/949320). By the time you have finished reading this, the first chapter of said fic will have been posted. The first chapter starts off with Haley and Jesse. It'll explore multiple POVs and really, it'll just be an overall expanded version of this I guess. And I'll take requests. So, feel free to check that out and let me know what you think. Any feedback is appreciated.


	39. Chapter 39

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooray for another jumbled mess?! Heh. I will be a jumbled mess myself after tonight's new episode of Breaking Bad. Anyway, carry on!

By the time night had finally rolled around, Beth had never felt more exhausted in her life. She couldn't recall a time she had ever felt so completely overwhelmed and flustered over what was going on. Not only that, but _confused_. What happened to Jesse, the fact that she hadn't been keeping in contact with Haley, her father still not on board with her choice of boyfriend, and her relationship with Daryl in general. She was even concerned about what was going on between Maggie and Jax.

It just didn't make sense though. Beth Greene had always made it a point to stay organized and on top of things, she didn't know chaos and all these things she had come to learn over the past couple months. She was always the quiet girl who paid attention in class and had parent approved friends and relationships. The old Beth Greene wouldn't have known what to do with any of this information. Heck, she really didn't know what to do with it now.

But amid everything that was running through her head, Beth found herself walking down the hall toward Maggie's room and lightly knocked on the door. If there was anyone that could make her feel better, it was her sister.

Instead of calling out, Maggie had walked over and opened the door. She was already dressed down in what she wore as pajamas: her old physical education shirt from high school and a pair of sweat pants. She didn't say a word. She just left the door open and retreated back to her bed where she had a pile of clean laundry she was putting away.

"Something on your mind?" Maggie folded up a t-shirt and placed it in the top drawer of her dresser. She glanced over in her sister's direction as she now entered the room and shut the door a crack.

"A lot, actually," Beth began. She trailed her way over toward Maggie's bed, picked up her pillow, and sat in its place all while hugging it to her chest. "I guess I never thought about how much things have changed until now."

"Is everything okay?" Maggie stopped what she was doing and turned her full attention to her. "This Daryl guy?"

Beth shrugged, not sure how she could even explain everything to Maggie. "I'm fine. And it's not just Daryl. It's just everything in general. Everything just feels different." She noticed Maggie's eyes didn't meet her own and she subconsciously placed her hand in the general area that her sister was staring. Her necklace.

"Where'd that come from?" Maggie raised an eyebrow.

"Daryl." Beth bit her lip from saying anymore.

Maggie seemed to give it a little thought before turning back to folding her clothes. "That was nice of him."

Beth cleared her throat. Now would be a good time to change the subject. "So, you and Jax?"

"Whoa, what?" Maggie stopped again and turned to face her. "There's no 'me and Jax'. We've talked a bit but that's it."

This time Beth could tell Maggie was totally fibbing. She tried to hide it by busying herself with the laundry. "How much have you guys talked?"

Maggie now shrugged. "A little bit."

"You've talked to him since you've met."

"Well… yeah."

"And how much do you know about him?"

"Why does it matter?" Maggie sighed once she realized she had been defeated. "I know he was married, he was in a serious relationship with his last girlfriend, and he has a son. So, what?"

"None of that bothers you?" Beth questioned.

"Not really. We're just talking. I'm not even sure if it'll go anywhere."

Beth tried to picture her and Daryl alongside Maggie and Jax. The thought made her smile. Then add to that Haley and Jesse. "What if it does?"

Maggie rolled her eyes. "You worry too much."

\- - -

After taking a step back, it was clear what Beth needed—what she wanted to do. Since Maggie and Jax seemed to be doing okay, and Daryl and Jax were good friends, Beth proposed that they went on something of a double date. They needed a break. They needed some time to just be able to enjoy each other's company and have fun.

A few days later and that was just what they did.

It took some convincing on Daryl's behalf but he did give in. It felt odd riding passenger with Maggie to meet up with them at TM. But she figured she'd get to see just how close Maggie had become to Jax.

Once they were there, they had split up. Beth went with Daryl in his truck and Maggie went with Jax in his truck, which was a Dodge Ram. Then they were on the road again to their next meeting destination.

"So how have you been?" Beth glanced over at Daryl from the passenger side.

"Pretty good." Daryl shrugged. "It's been quiet. I'm almost not used to it, believe it or not. Jesse hasn't been around."

"Oh? I guess he and Haley had some stuff to work out. He's probably been with her. But glad to hear you've been doing well." Beth would have invited them to tag along too but she figured she'd give them some time.

"Yeah, probably. Almost miss the punk." Daryl must have caught the slight smirk on Beth's face because he repeated, "Almost."

A comfortable silence passed over them before Beth spoke up again. "Are we placing any bets this time? My sister and your best friend."

This time Daryl wore a smirk. "Nah. I'll play nice."

It wasn't much longer after that when the truck came to a stop. They were at a fairly large park which mostly consisted of wide open grass, trees, and a sidewalk that provided pavement for joggers and people out walking their dogs. Daryl killed the engine and Beth abandoned her purse by her feet as they both exited from the truck and met up with Maggie and Jax. They walked out onto the grass under the shade of a tall oak tree. Jax was the first to take a seat, patting the ground next to him and looking up at Maggie with what Beth would call "the puppy eyes".

"Maggie won't tell me what all is going on. So, Jax…" Beth took a seat across from them with Daryl, smiling. "Care to explain?"

Maggie shook her head. "There's nothing to explain."

"Your sister showed up at TM looking for him. She used you as an excuse for showin' up." Daryl slightly leaned in toward Beth as he spoke, his voice low but not quite low enough.

Maggie's face flushed and Jax laughed. "So, let me get this straight. Am I supposed to be some sort of surprise or something?"

"We're not dating," Maggie stated.

"I didn't say we were." Jax looked to Beth. "I called her the other day. She came over to my place for a bit."

Beth could tell they were both practically fighting to pretend they weren't interested in one another. But she knew her sister. She could tell she liked him, whether she wanted to admit it or not. She couldn't hide that. And though she didn't really know Jax, he seemed like he was genuinely interested in Maggie. Maybe their words didn't say it but their body language did. They both seemed pretty open.

They would make a cute couple.

\- - -

It was mostly meaningless banter from there on out. Jax seemed to be the most talkative and when they fell silent, they had resorted to just lying in the grass. There were a few people walking the park. A couple with dogs. Just the faint sound of voices and the trees rustling in the wind around them. It was peaceful.

"I'm sure this would make for an interesting picture. All of us just sort of lying here like we're dead," Maggie stated. "Though it is comfortable. And odd. Especially odd."

Beth suddenly hopped up from where she was seated in the grass and walked over toward the trucks. Since she had left her purse on the floor of Daryl's truck, she had left her cell phone in there as well. It probably wouldn't hurt to keep it on her not to mention she had a camera phone. Maybe she could get a couple pictures since Maggie had made that comment. She didn't have any.

She opened the passenger side door and reached down for her purse, her fingers just brushing over the handle as she heard a noise from behind her. She didn't really think anything of it since they were at a park. Whoever was in the van parked beside Daryl's truck must have been exiting the vehicle. But that was when Beth felt an arm snake around her waist and a hand clamp over her mouth.

It was in that moment that Beth knew it wasn't someone she knew. It wasn't Daryl, it wasn't Jax, and it definitely wasn't Maggie. If there was any part of her that wasn't quite awake, it certainly was now. Her heart felt as if it was pounding out of her chest as she started thrashing and screaming the best she could from behind the man's hand. She dug her nails into his flesh and bit down on his hand as hard as she could, giving her just those few seconds to yell Daryl's name at the top of her lungs before she was thrown into the van.

Beth had a hard time comprehending anything after that. The van was moving—how fast and where to, she didn't know. She felt hands grabbing at her and she did everything she could to keep them away. She punched, she screamed, she kicked. A few hits connected. She swore she heard a couple gun shots. And that's when she realized the side door was still open. The two or so men that were trying to get her under control hadn't found the time to pull it shut.

In one final attempt to escape, Beth tried to jump out of the moving vehicle. She stuck her left arm out and tried to find something to brace herself, to pull herself forward and launch out. But either the shift of the van, gravity, or one of the men weren't on her side because the door slammed shut on her forearm with such a strong force she knew in that moment it was broken. She screamed out in pain as tears blurred her vision.

The next thing she even registered was that Daryl and Jax were there by her side, picking her up off the ground, Maggie running toward them. She was out of the van and she was in Daryl's arms, crying hysterically as she could feel the blood running down her arm. _Her_ blood. _Her_ arm.

Daryl pulled her tight to his chest. He had a hand on the back of her neck as she buried her face into his shoulder. He was whispering something near her ear but she didn't comprehend any of the words. Then it was Jax's voice. Then Maggie's.

Beth practically collapsed then and there. The only thing truly keeping her on her feet was Daryl. She felt numb. She couldn't even really feel the pain in her arm and she didn't understand why. She had been attacked. It all felt like a dream. But it wasn't. She knew it wasn't.


	40. Chapter 40

"What the _hell_ was all that back there?—and you have a _gun_?" Maggie had Jax practically backed into the corner of the hospital waiting room. From where Daryl was sitting, he could tell Jax was trying to keep his wits about him and trying to calm Maggie down but they had reached a threshold.

Maggie lowered her voice so that she wasn't drawing as much attention to them. "What's going on? What happened to my sister?"

Daryl buried his face in his hands in an attempt to tune them out but it just kept playing over and over again in his head. He had seen that van when it pulled up next to his truck and parked. Noticed that no one ever exited from it. But it completely slipped his mind when Beth had gone back to his truck. The next thing he knew, he was seeing her thrown into that damn van. And he ran like hell to try and catch up just as it started to move.

Jax was by his side in an instant and tried to shoot out one of the tires, his pistol having been concealed in his vest. Ultimately, whoever was driving had slowed down for some reason and it gave them enough time to catch up. He saw Beth trying to jump out in a failed attempt. Heard her scream in pain. And when he was able to pull her into his arms, it was probably a good thing Jax was there because Daryl would have killed every last one of those men.

Maggie had already dialed 911 while running after them and it didn't take long for a squad car and ambulance to show up. Rick and Shane of course. But they were the least of Daryl's concern. He ignored them and got in his truck to follow the ambulance. And now here he was, sitting in the waiting room of the hospital with Maggie out of her mind and Jax just as clueless as Daryl. Or at least, almost.

By the time Daryl had partially snapped out of it, he noticed it was quiet. He looked over to see that Maggie was gone and that Jax had taken a seat.

"You okay?" Jax questioned once he realized Daryl was staring over at him.

Daryl vaguely nodded. "Yeah…"

"I called Clay and let him know. Figured this might be somewhere up our alley." Jax leaned onto his knees. "Girls like Beth don't just get abducted for nothing."

Daryl slightly froze at the mentioning of Clay. "He comin' up here? And the guys?"

Jax shook his head. "They're staying put."

"Good…" Daryl had a feeling he'd be seeing more of Beth's family before the day was over. The last thing he needed was all the guys from TM showing up. Especially Clay. He was the last man he wanted to see. Though with how things had just occurred, Daryl couldn't help but wonder if this was somehow tied to that crooked bastard.

As if it were on cue, the rest of the Greene family had made an entrance led by Maggie. The second time Daryl had come face to face with them, and it had to be under these circumstances. He immediately got to his feet as well as Jax. They all looked displeased to say the least.

Hershel was the first to approach Daryl, stopping just in front of him. Daryl had reluctantly met his icy stare for a few seconds but had to break it shortly after.

"Maggie called to inform me that my youngest daughter was almost abducted?"

Daryl met the older man's stare again, unsure if he was actually supposed to answer the question or if it was meant to be rhetorical. He decided upon the latter and remained silent.

Just as Hershel opened his mouth to continue, Maggie had stepped out in front of him, separating the two. She kept her back to Daryl as she faced her father.

"I don't understand what happened either, daddy. But I can assure you that if it wasn't for Daryl and Jax, Beth would have been taken. God only knows what would have happened if they didn't get her back."

"But if you two wouldn't have been hanging out with these guys, it wouldn't have happened in the first place!" Shawn retorted as he stepped forward.

"These are all fair points but we are just as equally confused. We don't have a clue what happened either," Jax tried.

It may not have been the smartest thing, but Daryl walked away. It was the only thing he could really do that didn't involve him trying to argue back. Maggie had stood up for him and Jax blindly and he wasn't so sure he deserved that. He wasn't so sure that this was just a random attack.

Daryl had found the room Beth had been admitted to and allowed himself entry. Maggie had already been in to see her but Daryl couldn't bring himself to. Not right away. But he had to now. He had to see her before he left.

He made his way over to the side of the bed and upon noticing her left arm in a cast, he moved to her right side. She didn't look at him. She didn't even budge. It was like she wasn't even there. Her once bright eyes now seemed dead. And that frightened him.

"Hey…" Daryl tried to meet her stare but came up empty. He glanced down at her hand and cautiously grabbed it. He had no clue what the hell he was doing or what point he was trying to prove. Maybe there wasn't a point to prove. He just knew Beth wasn't herself from the moment he walked through the door.

Daryl managed to wrap his foot around the leg of the chair nearby and pulled it over, never letting go of her hand. He took a seat and sighed. She must have been in shock. It would explain the sort of absence about her. He soon found himself staring mindlessly over at the screen that read her vitals, the faint beeping coming from the machine filling his ears. Though it was quiet, it felt almost deafening. First Jesse and now Beth. He didn't know what to say to her. But he had to try, didn't he?

"I should have paid more attention. I thought the vehicle looked suspicious but I didn't do anything…"

He still didn't get anything out of Beth but no one had come barreling in through the door yet either. It was only a matter of time before he'd be chased off.

"…Your dad's right. He always was." Daryl chewed on his lip.

Still nothing. At this point, he wasn't even sure if she was hearing a word he said. He knew it wasn't a wise idea to keep Beth around. Not only was she completely different from him—the complete opposite—but she was innocent. Too young to be experiencing this sort of shit. And if he didn't have such conflicting emotions about everything before, he did now.

A part of him wished he would have pulled himself together and stuck with it when he told her to get lost. He should have never stayed in any form of contact with her. She'd have been better off that way.

But he couldn't just leave now. He didn't want to. And that marked the first time that he truly didn't want to leave. Any other time or practically any other person, he wouldn't have a problem. Sayonara. Adios.

Beth was different though. She was so much more than that. And he almost felt like a complete new person because of her. He wasn't as angry all the time. He allowed himself to be more accepting, a little more open. Maybe she had changed him for the better. Maybe, in some strange sense, she saved his life.

"I was just too selfish to let ya go." Daryl gave her hand a squeeze. "M'sorry."

Realizing that talking to her in the state she was in was a lost cause, and her family somewhere around the corner, Daryl got back to his feet and exited from the room. As soon as he shut the door behind him he came face to face with Rick and Shane. He figured it was only a matter of time before he ran into them too.

Shane placed his hands on his hips. "Got some questions for you and your buddy Jax Teller. Figured we'd catch ya before you try and take off."


	41. Chapter 41

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies for the long wait. I just lost my interest in The Walking Dead fanfiction, writing and reading it. I promise I do have this story mapped out and the ending in mind, it's just getting myself motivated to reach it. I do have to say though, season 4 looks like it's off to an awesome start. (And I don't even know what's going on with this chapter? Oh boy...)

It felt good to be back home in her own bed. Away from everyone. Nothing but the sound of silence to fill her ears. She just didn’t feel like herself. Her only company had been her parents and her siblings since she had left the hospital early this morning. She kept her phone turned off and on her dresser across the room. She had only shut it off after receiving a couple texts from Haley asking how she was and a couple missed calls from Daryl. 

Beth just didn’t want to see or talk to any of them. 

It was starting to get late, the sun low in the sky. She turned to lie on her back, staring up at the ceiling momentarily before resting her eyes. If she wasn’t mistaken, she heard a rumble of a vehicle outside. It wasn’t much longer after that when she heard the screen door smack shut and multiple voices almost arguing with one another. She couldn’t pinpoint just who it was but she was certain her father and Maggie were a part of it. Then it had gone quiet again. 

There was a faint knock on her bedroom door. It had already been left open a crack but she could hear the hinges work their way open further causing her to open her eyes and glance over. The last person she expected to see was standing in her doorway. She wasn’t sure how she felt about it either. 

Beth uncurled herself and sat up on her bed as Daryl stepped further into her room. Her first thought was how he got past her family and convinced them to let him in. She hadn’t quite reached a second thought on the matter because there was a sudden flutter in her chest, a flutter that was somewhere between “I’m glad to see you” and “what the hell happened”; anxiety, unexplainable. 

Daryl quickly glanced around her room. He sighed and nodded his head toward where her phone lay abandoned. “I tried callin’.” 

Beth just stared up at him, subconsciously rubbing at the cast covering her arm. She provided a small nod and fixed her stare down at her feet. Whatever feeling was washing over her, she wasn’t sure. But she got to her feet and wrapped her arms around him. Emotionless. She felt his arms pull her in, the warmth spreading over her body. 

After a while, Daryl slightly pushed her back, gentle hands pressing on the outside of her shoulders. Beth met his stare. He looked… worried? Scared? Nervous? Something she couldn’t recall ever seeing in him. 

“M’sorry,” Daryl muttered. “’Bout everything. If somethin’ woulda happened to you—” 

“Was this SAMCRO?” Beth felt like her voice seemed so small. 

Daryl took his hands back. “I don’t know what happened yesterday. Or why it happened.” 

“And Jesse? With what happened to him, is it all tied together?” Beth realized Daryl could no longer look her in the eyes. She typically associated that with guilt. But Daryl wouldn’t lie. It also didn’t rule out the possibility of this having something to do this whole motorcycle gun running gang affiliation. 

Beth walked back to her bed and sat on the edge. “Just tell me the truth, Daryl.” 

“I don’t know. And that is the truth. It might have somethin’ to do with all of that but it might not. I got a feelin’ it might but that don’t mean it is…” 

Beth fell silent though there were a lot of things running through her mind. There was a part of her that just wanted to throw all of this behind her and move on. What was done was done. But then she was reminded by the cast that her arm was _broken_ and that whatever happened could have been a lot more serious. And for all she knew, it could happen again. 

“Look… I just wanted to make sure you were alright. I don’t wanna be on your parents bad side anymore than I already am. So if ya need anything, let me know.” 

Beth glanced up at him and he just kind of dipped his head down before exiting her room. He didn’t say anymore, just left. A few more minutes of silence and she realized that she didn’t want Daryl to leave. She needed to talk to him. She couldn’t just shut him and everyone else out, no matter how much easier that seemed. 

So she headed down the hall and toward the stairs before she could hear talking again. Maggie and Daryl. She slowed her approach, keeping out of sight. 

“When do I get the whole story?” She could hear Maggie ask Daryl, voice lowered. 

“That’s Jax’s job.” 

“This is my sister we’re talking about.” 

And as soon as Beth heard the screen door screech its way open, she made herself known. She descended the last few steps and approached her sister and Daryl, both having froze where they stood. Maggie appeared shocked to see her outside of her room. She assumed the same of Daryl, based off of their expressions. 

“I don’t want you to leave,” Beth began. She locked her eyes on Daryl’s and thought to herself, _not now, not ever_. Because whatever had happened, they could work through it. Beth could get him out of it. They could do _something_. 

Because everything they had been through prior to now, Beth wasn’t about to throw it all away. 

Nobody said a word and it took a minute before Beth noticed their attention had been drawn to something behind her. She turned just enough to see her father standing there, grim expression. The cause of the now awkward silence. 

Daryl cautiously stepped back inside the house, allowing the screen door to fully shut behind him. His eyes had flickered to Hershel but back to Beth. “If that’s what you want?” 

Beth nodded and outstretched her right hand. Daryl hesitated before acting on it while Maggie quickly ushered their father into the kitchen and out of sight. His hand met hers and she laced her fingers with his, surprised her father hadn’t exploded yet. Maybe she was still testing that boundary. Maybe he was too far in shock to really form words. Either way, Beth led Daryl back upstairs to her room. 

She shut the door and gently pushed Daryl to her bed without a single word. She didn’t miss the way his eyes briefly darted over her body as he sat on the edge of her bed. Beth straddled his lap without a second thought and placed her hands on either side of his face before drawing her lips to his in a simple kiss. She could feel him swallow, his breathing picking up. That nervousness returning, weariness waning. And in some ways, she had never felt more in control.

She pressed her lips against his with more force and slipped her tongue into his mouth. As the kiss progressed, she rocked against him. He slightly moaned into the kiss as he used one hand behind him to keep him braced, the other at the back of her neck. 

Beth ceased all movement long enough to pull back and look him in the eyes. Maybe she sensed a little confusion in his look now. She wasn’t even sure where she was going with all of this. She didn’t want Daryl to leave. She wanted to talk—but at the same time, she didn’t. Because no matter what Daryl said, she knew it had to be something to do with SAMCRO. What happened to her yesterday, the almost-abduction and her getting her arm broken. What happened to Jesse. It had to be SAMCRO. And for a fleeting moment, she didn’t think she could compete with that. Daryl couldn’t just _leave_ the business. But then she remembered where she was. 

“I love you.” Three simple words that were usually reserved for family and close friends. 

They also turned out to be three words that made Daryl immediately tense up.


	42. Chapter 42

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It would probably help if I actually read through my story to see if this was all flowing together. Hopefully it isn’t too repetitive or anything like that. And hopefully it comes off okay; I have it envisioned in my head, not sure if it’s coming off the same way. Yeah, I fret too much…

When Daryl hadn’t reciprocated the words back to her, remaining quite stiff and even a bit distant, Beth slid off his lap and took a step back. He sat forward more now that her weight was gone. She kept her stare trained on him. 

Surely it wasn’t too early to say she loved him. Not when she meant it. They had been through quite a bit as it was and she was fairly confident that she was one of very few girls, if not the only girl, who had gotten through his tough exterior. 

“Daryl?” 

“I know. I—“ Daryl rubbed his face and sighed. “I care ‘bout you, I do. More than anyone. You just… caught me off guard s’all.” 

“You don’t have to be afraid of love. Or commitment for that matter.” 

“M’not.” 

Beth crossed her arms and sunk back a bit. “Are we okay?” 

Daryl looked up at her, brow furrowed. He got to his feet and stood before her, gently resting his hands on her shoulders. “We’re fine. I should be askin’ you if _you’re_ okay.” 

“Fine,” Beth shrugged. She forced a smile before moving his hands from her shoulders down to her hips. 

She wanted to ask if she was safe, but that sounded too much like something out of a movie. Like her life really was in danger. Maybe it was for all she knew. Maybe it was a good question to ask. But what was the point? What had happened to her happened when Daryl was with her. Jax too. Of course he would do anything and everything in his power to keep her safe. It just didn’t guarantee anything. It couldn’t. 

Beth lay down on her bed and pulled Daryl with her so that she could curl up against him, her head nuzzled into his neck just below his chin, fists balled up into the fabric of his shirt. After everything, she just felt more awake. More aware of her surroundings and what everything could mean. She was now truly aware of the dangers that came with him but she was also truly aware how much she cared about him. He was her first real boyfriend, though much older than her, but that didn’t mean anything. Age was just a number; experience. 

The longer she laid there, the more the silence drug out. But she was content and Daryl must have been too. She started to picture the future and what it could hold if she stayed with him. She pictured them getting married somewhere down the road, maybe moving away from all of this. Start over fresh. Then she pictured having children. They could both get a stable job, enough income to get by. No gang affiliation, no terrible family memories. Nobody to tell them what they could or couldn’t do. 

She realized that thought process was crazy. Thinking too far ahead into the future could only ruin things in the present. She had to just live in the _now_ , take everything day by day. She wasn’t so sure she could leave her family anyway. For all she really knew, maybe she wouldn’t even be with Daryl in the future to come. Maybe something would happen and she would change the way she felt about him. She couldn’t rule that out. 

Beth rolled onto her back and rested her arm across her stomach. “Would you ever think about teaching me how to use a gun?” 

“…You serious?” 

“Yeah. I mean, I don’t want to ever have to _use_ one but I think it’d be nice to know how one works, you know?” 

Her reasoning made sense in her mind. She wanted the knowledge of how to use a gun but she hoped she wouldn’t ever have to actually shoot someone. But if she knew how to protect herself, she could feel a little better. A little safer. And if she was planning on staying with him, which she was, there was always that chance that danger could be lurking around the corner. 

“You think that’s such a good idea? What ‘bout your family—“ 

Beth turned to face Daryl again and placed a finger over his lips. She smiled. “It’s my decision to make. Not theirs.” She took her finger back and there was a brief moment of contemplation on Daryl’s behalf. 

“Alright… We’ll see once your arm is healed.” 

Beth shook her head. “Now, before my arm is healed. I can do it.” 

Her eyes searched his and he sighed, vaguely nodding. She got a “we’ll see” out of him and that was good enough. She leaned forward and kissed him on the lips with a hint of a smile. 

/ / / 

It was the next day when Daryl decided to drop by the clubhouse. He sought out Gemma, looking for advice. Something he typically didn’t do. Ever. But the situation with Beth had left him clueless. 

“What’s on your mind, sweetheart? How’s Beth?” 

“That’s just it.” Daryl leaned against the bar. “After that attack, I’m not sure how she’s really doin’. Not sure what it did to her. She seemed emotionless at first, maybe a little scared. Now she’s talkin’ about guns and wants me to teach her how to shoot. Just isn’t her.” 

“Maybe it’s not such a bad thing. Girl needs to know how to protect herself too.” Gemma kept her stare on him and continued once he didn’t say anything, “I’m sure it’ll all blow over. Nothing to worry about.” 

“Maybe…” Daryl scratched at his chin. 

“Hey,” Gemma placed a hand on Daryl’s shoulder. “I mean it. Don’t let that get to you. With this lifestyle, you live and adapt.” 

“Yeah, no kiddin’. Understatement of the year.” 

Gemma smiled. “You talk to Jax yet?” 

Daryl shook his head. “No, why?” 

Gemma only provided a shrug before the door to the clubhouse opened. She turned to see who it was as Daryl stood up straight, no longer slouching against the bar. He was surprised to see Beth. Very surprised. 

“Everything alright?” 

Beth nodded. She walked over toward them and put an arm around him in a one-armed hug sort of way. Daryl returned the favor, pulling her into his side. He noticed she was watching Gemma. 

“I’ll leave you two to it.” Gemma forced a smile and grabbed her purse off the bar. Beth spoke up before she could take another step. 

“Can I talk to you? Alone.” 

Daryl glanced between the two and saw the confusion on Gemma’s face when her eyes met his. He shrugged, unsure of what Beth was wanting. He pulled his arm back to leave the clubhouse and Beth caught him in a quick kiss before he could. 

Daryl headed for the garage figuring whatever this “girl talk” consisted of would take a while. He figured he’d see what was up with Jax since Gemma had mentioned him. Of course, he ran into Clay on his way over. He tried to ignore him and keep walking but Clay put an arm out to stop him, his hand gripping his bicep. 

“You can’t seriously think I had something to do with this? Could’ve been Niners, Mayans, Lobos… Hell, it could have something to do with that brother of yours. Why would I try to attack an innocent girl?” 

Daryl pulled his arm back and narrowed his eyes. “Don’t touch me. And leave my brother outta this.” 

/ / / 

“What were you two talking about?” Beth questioned, running a finger over the bar’s surface. She stared at Gemma’s purse as she set it back down. 

“You really think that’s any of your business?” 

“It is if it was about me.” 

“Thinking a little highly of ourselves, are we?” Gemma dug through her purse and pulled a pack of cigarettes out. She grabbed one and set it on her lips before lighting it, taking a short drag. “Sorry, but coming in here without warning and talking to me like that won’t get you very far.” 

Beth shrugged. “Do you know anything about what happened?” She waved her arm in the air for emphasis. 

“Do I know who did that number to your arm? No. The club’s working on it.” 

Beth glanced around the clubhouse. The culprit of her change, of her losing some of her innocence. “I’m not leaving. I’m not afraid anymore.” 

“For your sake, I hope you know what you’re getting yourself into.” 

“I guess we’ll see.” Beth forced a small smile and headed for the exit. 

A part of her almost felt an adrenaline rush from talking to Gemma like that. Another part of her felt like she was ready to break down and cry. She’d have to work on her tough exterior before she had it down, before she could mask her true emotions. It felt like she was living a double life; a split personality. And she definitely didn’t want to get on Gemma’s bad side because she felt like Gemma was the only person who would understand. She almost looked up to her. 

Beth spotted Daryl over by the garage and made her way to him. He was talking to Jax and Chibs. When he noticed her approaching, he broke free and started heading over toward her. The guys both nodded in recognition. She waved back. 

“Girl talk over?”  Daryl looked her over. 

“Yeah, I just wanted to run an idea by you.” 

“Alright…” Daryl chewed on his lip. “Shoot.” 

“How about we get away for a while? Like a mini vacation or something. Maybe invite Jax and my sister along. Haley and Jesse.” 

Daryl smirked. “That… sounds good to me. Got anything specific on your mind?” 

“Not really.” Beth shook her head. “I just want to get away for a bit. Have some fun. What about this weekend?” 

“I can see about my uncle’s cabin. It’s about a two hour drive or so.” 

“Sounds perfect.” Beth shared in a smirk now. She wrapped her arms behind his neck and pulled him into a kiss. Some time to themselves was just what they needed. Just them and good company.  


	43. Chapter 43

It took a lot of convincing, and a bit of a white lie or two, in order for Beth and Maggie to get out of the house for the weekend. Beth was certain their parents, especially their father, saw right through it all. A simple sister road trip and nothing more? It reeked of suspicion, but he didn't say anything. Beth figured that since Maggie was going with her, it seemed more plausible, and perhaps would allow their parents to feel a little better about it.

Beth took the Sable, Maggie riding shotgun and their packed bags in the backseat. To avoid questions, the plan was for everyone to meet up at Daryl's apartment. That way the Sable couldn't be found at TM. The most obvious location.

"'Bout time," Jax teased as they exited the car. Beth had parked next to Jesse's car, Daryl's truck on the other side of him, then Jax's Dodge Ram. "We were almost thinking about leaving without you two."

"Yeah right." Maggie rolled her eyes with a hint of a smirk.

"Have any trouble getting out for the weekend?" Haley questioned.

"Not really." Beth shrugged. She glanced around at everyone and the vehicles. "What's the plan then?"

"Figured the two kids could ride with us. You two," Jax motioned between Beth and Daryl, "can just drive up together. Leading the way, of course."

"Ha ha," Jesse forced a sarcastic laugh at Jax's 'children' remark.

Beth only smiled. She could already tell it was going to be a great weekend—a very well needed weekend too. They could just put everything in the past and focus on having some fun.

Everyone gathered what they needed and split up into the corresponding vehicles. Beth hopped into the passenger side of Daryl's truck and before she knew it, they were on the road.

"How long of a drive is it?" Beth pondered aloud, staring out the window. Her stare trailed over the houses in passing before glancing over at Daryl then back again.

"'Bout two hours, give or take." Daryl glanced over at her. "How's your arm?"

"It's fine."

Beth fiddled with her necklace. She suddenly wished she could apologize to Gemma for how she acted. Gemma, Daryl, her family. Everyone, really. She was trying to be stronger, more assertive. But maybe she wasn't meant to be either of those.

"Still tryin' to get to the bottom of all that—"

I don't want to talk about it. Please." Beth rested her head against the back of the seat. "I just want to enjoy the weekend. I don't care about anything else." She turned her head toward him and smiled.

"Alright." He nodded.

It didn't take much to notice Daryl was carrying a knife like Jax, a good sized blade hanging in a sheath from his belt. And she'd almost bet he had his gun somewhere on him or in the truck. Same as Jax. Normally she would find that unsettling. But this time? She felt a little more secure.

* * *

Beth felt relieved when they pulled onto what appeared to be a side road. A few minutes later they were greeted by the wood cabin. There was nothing in sight but trees for miles and a lake not too far off. It was the perfect definition of tranquility, much like the place Daryl had taken Beth before.

Everyone exited from their vehicle while Daryl approached the front door to unlock it. Beth grabbed her things, along with Daryl's, and tossed them onto the ground beside his truck. Jax and the others followed her lead.

"Is there a video store around here?" Haley inquired.

Daryl threw the door open to the cabin and turned back with an eyebrow raised. "Why?"

"Oh, c'mon. A cabin out here in the woods, secluded? It's too cliché  _not_  to get some cheesy horror movies." Haley smiled.

Jax leaned against his truck while lighting a cigarette. He took a drag and smirked. "I could go for some crappy movies."

Daryl rolled his eyes. "There's one in town."

"Can we go?" Haley insisted. She was looking back and forth between Daryl and Jax like they had the final say.

Before Daryl could say any more, Jax turned to Maggie. She shrugged but he tossed his keys to her with a grin. "Get something good. We'll stay here."

* * *

"You guys go ahead. I'm gonna call home and check in while I got some cell service." Maggie had parked Jax's truck, Beth now riding passenger and Haley in the backseat. It was probably close to a thirty minute drive to get into town and find the little video rental store. Maggie fiddled with her phone while Beth headed inside with Haley, a chime going off as they entered the building.

And of course, the first movie Haley went for had a dark cover and looked like some horror slasher film or something.

"We should get some zombie movies. Then if the news is true, we'll know 'what to do'." Haley set the movie case back down on the shelf that she was looking at and finger quoted the air.

"What news?" Beth trailed behind Haley as she started down a different aisle. She wasn't an avid TV watcher and the only news she typically ever heard came from her father's mouth since he read the newspaper faithfully.

"Apparently there are cannibals up east. It's been traveling." As the words left Haley's mouth, they didn't even seem to faze her.

"You're telling me people are  _eating_  people?" Beth furrowed her brow. Haley was good at pulling her leg from time to time but she seemed serious.

Haley shrugged. "It's probably nothing. Probably just some hoax or something. Farfetched truth. Government over exaggerating. Pick your poison."

Beth picked up a movie case that Haley had just set down: 28 Days Later. It was a zombie movie that mentioned an incurable virus spreading and the survivors were trying to find sanctuary. Of course it was all fictional but she couldn't even begin to imagine waking up to real zombies—a real, undead, cannibalistic threat. She set the case back down and slightly shuddered, rubbing her arms.

After circling the store one full time, Haley picked out Dawn of the Dead and the Strangers. Beth didn't really have much of a say in the movie choice, since horror or anything remotely scary was typically out of the question for her. Maggie had joined them about half way through and agreed upon Haley's choices. Their excuse was that it gave them a reason to hug to their guys closer than needed. And, well, Beth couldn't argue with that.

When they returned, they had come to find out that the guys had taken the liberty to bring everything inside and get things situated. There were two small bedrooms and a living area, and apparently seniority had won over the rooms because Jesse's and Haley's things were sitting by the couch.

"Seriously?" Haley dropped the movies on the kitchen table with an exaggerated sigh. "Well, I know who's getting laid tonight."

Beth ducked her head down in an attempt to cover her blush. Luckily Daryl wasn't within earshot, but Jax was. Haley's comment had gotten a laugh out of him as he glanced over at Maggie, eyebrow raised. Maggie only shook her head but Beth could tell she was trying not to smile.

"Sex aside," Maggie partially glared at Haley for bringing it up, "what are the plans for tonight?"

"Daryl and Jesse are looking at trying to get a fire going out back. What movies did you get?" Jax walked over to the table and picked the plastic cases up, reading the labels. He nodded as he set them back down. "Not bad."

Beth bit her lip and slid back outside. She wasn't sure if it was Haley's joke or the confidence in the room but she felt a little uncomfortable standing there. The last thing she wanted to think about was her sister's sex life and if she had already been with Jax. Not to mention she never told her sister that she slept with Daryl.

Beth wrapped her arms around herself as she walked around the side of the cabin and toward the back. She could hear Jesse's voice more prominently over Daryl's as she neared them and couldn't help but think he might have been driving Daryl crazy. In a good way, of course.

Daryl greeted her as she walked over toward him. They had a small fire already going, the orange embers nipping at the air. Jesse slightly poked at it with a stick.

"Should have brought marshmallows. S'mores sound so damn good right now…" Jesse sighed.

Beth smiled. "We could always run back into town."

"Or we could just have 'em tomorrow night," Daryl suggested.

Jesse threw the stick he was playing with into the fire. "You're just too lazy to go out tonight." A smirk played at his lips and Beth could tell that Daryl was trying to hide his own smirk.

"Better watch your mouth, sunshine."

* * *

Everyone had come outside after a while and took a seat around the fire. There was small talk and teasing, along with some goofing around—primarily the guys—until the sun had completely set. Once it was dark enough, it had been decided to head back inside and watch the movies they had rented. Because "scary movies during the day are uncalled for," according to Haley.

They ended up watching Dawn of the Dead first. Beth couldn't get it out of her mind about what Haley had said earlier at the video store. There were some parts that made her jump and others that made her cringe. She stayed close to Daryl, nuzzled against him on the floor with their backs propped up by the couch. Jax had made a joke of "zombie apocalypse birth control" when the woman gave birth, which gained him a playful smack from Maggie and a chuckle out of Jesse and Daryl. Beth didn't want to even think about it.

Beth thought she was doing pretty well for sitting through a fairly gory movie, but that all changed when Maggie got up to switch it out for the Strangers. From the moment that movie practically started, Beth had curled up as close as she could to Daryl. She wasn't alone either, because she could tell Haley and Maggie were even freaked out as it progressed. Even Jesse. He had fallen near silent compared to how he had been watching Dawn of the Dead. Needless to say, when that movie was over, Beth felt relieved—scared but relieved.

"I don't understand why in every movie, the protagonist has to ask if someone else is there." Jax tossed the movies, now returned to their proper cases, onto the table. "If someone was there, do you  _really_  think they're gonna answer you?"

"If they're as stupid as the protagonist, yeah." Maggie shrugged.

"We just watched whatever  _that_  was and that's all you have to say?" Beth shuddered and turned to her best friend. "Why did you have to pick that one out, Haley?"

Haley laughed. "Uh, because we're in a secluded cabin like they were. You can't get much more cliché than that."

"Yeah, well… I swear if someone starts pounding on the door or window, I'm hijacking one of your trucks and getting the hell out of here." Jesse rubbed his face and sat down on the couch.

Everyone started to settle down after a while. Beth headed for the bedroom she would be staying the weekend with Daryl in and shut the door a crack, only for Daryl to follow right behind her. He shut the door with a click.

"You alright?"

Beth nodded. "Just a little freaked out. I'm not a big 'scary movie' type of person."

Daryl shrugged. "I'm not a big 'movie' type of person in general."

Beth glanced over at him now and met his eyes. She let a smile creep across her face as she pulled her hair down from her ponytail and ran her fingers through it. "Does that door lock?"

"What—" Daryl immediately furrowed his brow, looking back and forth between the door and Beth. "Yeah? You…?"

Beth pulled her shirt off over her head and tossed it to the side of the room. If she had Daryl and this bedroom all to herself this weekend, she planned on utilizing the time. And by the look on Daryl's face, he didn't have a problem with that.


	44. Chapter 44

The sun was in the sky, no cloud in sight. Beth had decided to go for a walk with Daryl through the woods while the others played in the lake. Since she still had her cast, swimming was out of the question. That was fine with her because she knew Daryl probably enjoyed the woods over the lake anyway.

"You could always show me how to shoot. Now would be the perfect time, out here," Beth partially joked. She felt like she was slowly becoming her normal self again, less agitated and on guard being away from those who stressed her or Daryl out.

"And what makes you think I have my gun?" Daryl raised an eyebrow at her.

Beth smirked. "You have your knife, which you usually don't carry all too often. I was making the assumption you had your gun too."

"S'in my truck," was all he said in response and dropped the conversation. Beth figured that was fair. After all, she had been the one to say she didn't want to talk about that stuff this weekend. They'd eventually have to bring it up though. She couldn't just keep pushing it away like it never happened—being attacked like that.

After a while, the cabin and the lake were out of sight as they surrounded themselves by nothing but nature. Beth could still make out a few shrieks and laughs from the others but it was distant. It brought a smile to her lips.

It probably didn't help that she was thinking about coming onto Daryl either because, honestly, how often did the chance to have sex out in the woods come along?

Daryl had put his arm out to stop Beth in her tracks and bring her mind back to the present. Sometimes she felt like he could read her mind and she couldn't help but feel a little warm in the face.

Then she had realized why he stopped her.

"What is that? I mean, what happened to it?" Beth squinted her eyes at the ground up ahead in confusion while shuffling a bit behind Daryl.

"Looks like it's been ripped apart and half eaten."

Daryl walked toward the mangled deer on the ground and left Beth with no choice but to follow. She scrunched her face in disgust at all the blood and guts as well as the flies buzzing around insistently.

"What in the world did  _that_?"

Daryl shrugged while partially shaking his head. "I don't know. Don't look normal."

Beth lightly shoved his arm. "Knock it off. It isn't funny. I know what you're doing." She took a couple steps back and folded her arms. "Did Jax set this up?"

Before Daryl could reply, there was a snap of a twig from nearby suggesting that someone was out there with them. Beth swiveled on her feet to look all around them but didn't see anything in sight. When she looked back to Daryl, she noticed he had his hand resting on the hilt of his knife. She was about to yell out to the others to knock it off until then. If it was a joke, Daryl wasn't in on it.

Beth stepped back closer toward Daryl, biting her lip. There was another crack of a twig and rustle of leaves on the ground directing their attention to it. This time there was a man clear in sight. But he was slightly slumped over, grunting and bloodied, hair disheveled and clothes a bit torn and frayed.

"That's not Jax or Jesse…" Beth whispered more to herself than to Daryl as the realization hit her.

Then there was another man similar to the first. And another. And then a woman that looked to be in the same condition. And where they were all coming from and what they were, Beth wasn't sure. What she did know was that they just kept coming.

Beth felt a bit of a push and heard Daryl yell "go". She didn't think twice about running after that, heading in the general direction of the cabin. They walked a straight path for the most part and she was thankful for that. She knew Daryl was somewhere behind her running due to the sound of his rushed footsteps with hers but she didn't dare slow down or look back. She couldn't even remember a time she had ever run like this, ducking and weaving through the trees and branches.

Beth came to an abrupt stop as she ran into something—or rather some _one_ —solid. She screamed and pushed her way back from it as its hands gripped her by the arms but she couldn't escape.

"Hey—what the hell is going on with you two?" Jax's voice hit her then and she stopped struggling long enough to look up and realize it was him who had grabbed her. He released her as she took a step back, panting to regain her breath and looking to Daryl.

"There's—there's zombies or something out there!" Beth panted. She gripped onto Daryl's shirt as a confirmation that he was really still there beside her.

"Zombies?" Jax questioned, eyes narrowed.

"Somethin' ain't right. Wasn't gonna stick around to find out what," Daryl replied.

Suddenly, everything seemed darker. There were storm clouds in the sky and a few drops of rain started to fall. If zombies weren't freaky enough, the weather definitely was.

Maggie's scream pierced the air then, and Beth didn't hesitate to run toward her while yelling her name. Her heart was racing in her chest and as she neared the cabin, she could make out two forms on the ground. Beth froze in place just as a gunshot rang out. One of the two bodies dropped and the rain began to pelt down even harder.

Jax ran forward, pistol in hand, as he helped toss the body off of Maggie and pulled her to her feet. Maggie immediately embraced him all while slowly pushing him away from the dead body.

Beth joined them now and Maggie had left Jax long enough to hug her. "Are you okay?" She noticed there was some blood splattered on her face and shirt from Jax's shot but otherwise seemed unscathed.

Maggie nodded. "I'm fine."

"Let's get inside! Now!" Jax yelled over the pouring rain and thunder.

Beth released her sister and took hold of Daryl's hand as the four made their way to the back door of the cabin and let themselves in. They were drenched just from the short time they had been outside and it had decided to storm, everyone's hair slicked to their heads.

Daryl and Jax took a quick scan of the cabin before walking around and checking the rooms. Beth and Maggie moved a little more towards the living room area, Beth taking a hold of Maggie's hand now. She wanted to be able to find comfort in all of this but somehow things had just taken a drastic turn. And it didn't seem like it was going to make a change for the better.

"Where are the others?" Jax and Daryl stepped back into the room, concern clearly evident on both of their faces.

"They're not in here?" Beth glanced around like somehow she would magically spot them.

"I'll go find 'em. They gotta be out there somewhere close by," Daryl immediately offered.

"No—" Beth protested.

Jax nodded. "She's right. No way. At least not alone."

"Won't be gone long." Daryl refused to listen and headed for the front door. "I'll grab my gun. You stay here and make sure nothin' happens."

"Daryl—" Beth tried again but he left without another word, the door shutting behind him.

"He'll be fine," Jax assured her. He released the clip to his pistol and seemed to count his bullets before it clicked back into place. "Here, take this. It at least leaves you armed. Better than nothing." He pulled his knife from the sheath attached to his belt and passed it off to Maggie.

"And where are you going?" Maggie questioned, gripping the blade like her life counted on it.

"Nowhere. Staying put. At least for now…"

Silence took over the room shortly after that. Maggie had taken a seat on the couch while Jax slightly paced around the entire cabin. Beth tried to hum various songs to ease her nerves but it wasn't helping. She walked toward the nearest window and cupped her hands around her face to see out. A flash of lightning lit the sky momentarily, allowing Beth to see what was out there. She didn't really see anything other than the typical storm brewing.

Just as Beth was about to back away from the window, a bloody hand smacked against it, causing her to almost fall backward and scream. Her eyes were locked onto the piece of glass as the blood trailed down the window. She suddenly felt a firm grip on her arms again but when she turned around, there was no one there. Maggie was gone. Jax was gone.

The window busted out as glass shattered into the cabin and the shards splayed across Beth's back and over her head. She threw her arms over top her head in defense.

The next thing she knew, she was sitting up on a bed, drenched in sweat. She quickly noticed Daryl was beside her, his hands resting on her arms. Beth wiped at her eyes and fell into him, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. It was all just a dream.

The door to their room burst open then, further startling her. She glanced over to see Jax and Maggie in the doorway, first and foremost, followed by Jesse and Haley in the background. Jax had his jeans on while Maggie wore his shirt, her pants missing entirely. It was strange how Beth could go from a terrible dream to an embarrassing wake up call.

Jax sighed. "We heard you scream."

"…It was just a bad dream." Beth's face flushed. At what expense—the dream, the fact that she must have screamed aloud, or everyone's appearance—she wasn't sure.

Everyone dispersed from the doorway and the door was pulled shut.

"You alright?"

"Yeah… Sorry. It was just… it felt so real. We were all here. And there were zombies."

"Anybody get eaten?"

Beth turned to Daryl and noticed the slightest smirk. "No. Well, not that I know of." She playfully shoved him. "You're making fun of me!"

Daryl chuckled. "No more scary movies for you."

They both lay back down and Beth nuzzled into him. It wasn't quite morning yet so they could get a little more shuteye.

Beth lay there restless after her dream and thinking about what Haley had said. She knew it was absurd but she wondered if zombies truly did exist, or if they could. She figured she was lucky if they did because Daryl would protect her. He could teach her to defend herself.

She was getting way too far ahead of herself. Hell, she still had the SAMCRO business and her family's opinion of Daryl to worry about. And that was more important than focusing on fictional creatures.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm terrible at endings but uh, this is all I really got for this story. It has gone on far longer than I ever could have anticipated. Especially considering I originally planned to end it way back with Beth's birthday. But there is always an opportunity for a sequel down the road. Or the companion fic; if you'd like to see more of this story or characters, shoot me some requests. Just let me know.
> 
> I just want to say thank you so much to all of you who have stuck with me the whole way through. It's been a pleasure and I'm gonna miss y'all. xoxo


End file.
